Never Meant to Be
by Slighty Haunted
Summary: Some events simply aren't ever meant to happen, like a spirit and a human becoming more than mere friends. So, in order for them to be together, some sacrifices must be made.
1. Prologue

Author's Note:

This is the prologue to the story, but in a poem. And no, I do not own Spirited Away or intend to make any money from my original writings. However, I do own several OC (don't worry, they are very minor characters) because what fun would it be to beat up on the same old people?

Official Prologue-

It was never meant to be.  
A perfect pair,  
seeming to complement each other in every way,  
she could say anything  
and he would understand.  
He could do anything,  
and it always made her smile.  
Others would look on,  
only capable of dreaming  
about such compatibility.

However,  
they were each promised  
to a different way of life.  
She was meant to live for  
a short span,  
a beautiful flower that would  
extinguish with time.  
He was destined to live  
for an untold amount of time;  
a great legend that would  
shake the lives of thousands.

They both knew their own roles,  
they both knew about the other's,  
yet neither really understood why they  
couldn't be together.

And maybe that's the reason another spirit stepped in.


	2. To Wait Forever

Waiting eight years for something would kill most people. Humans simply don't have enough time to wait that long. They'd either drive themselves crazy or forget about it and move on.

Chihiro certainly never forgot.

As a ten year old girl, Chihiro went on a life-altering adventure in the spirit world, but you should already know that. What you might not know is that this journey lasted just a full moon short of a year, according to mortal time. However, the important thing you must remember is the little promise Kohaku gave Chihiro before she left, that they would meet again someday.

Well, the day Chihiro returned from the spirit world, she vowed to start working towards meeting him again. Remembering that the boy had stated he couldn't find his way home, she figured that if his filled-in river was restored, he could return to the mortal world. Poor Chihiro, it took her six long months of bugging her father to propose at one of their town's monthly meetings restoring the Kohaku River. Fortunately for Chihiro, a candidate for the next mayor election caught wind of the idea and ran away with it on a purple elephant.

The man, whose glory-hogging name won't be mentioned in this story, rallied the local environmentalists and took their battle to court against the apartment complex owners who originally filled in the river.

A year later...

The environmentalists were the only ones still fighting, the owners of the complexes had been ruined publicly. Luckily, the environmentalists managed to secure the right to restore the river, just rerouted so it went near (but not through) the apartment complexes that covered the old route. As a bonus, the restoration project would be governmentally funded and protected.

ANOTHER seven and a half years later...

The project was to be completed the next morning (the government funds had halted several times and thousands of dollars had to be raised locally, causing the huge delay). Chihiro was now a fresh nineteen and as mysterious as ever to the mortal world. To humans, she had been uncannily mature, easy-going, an environmentalist (she loved to volunteer), happy with her friends, but always had an aura that made people think she was always looking for something very important that she lost. The locals believed it had something to do with the year she went missing with her parents, an event that was blamed on three kidnappers notorious for holding their victims for long periods of time on drugs that resulted in memory loss.

In private, Chihiro sometimes broke down crying when she went to bed, quietly because she still lived with her parents, or when driving her car. She could remember Kohaku clearly and often dreamt of him in both human and dragon form. It was a real love, the kind that never really dies. She could've moved on, dated other boys, even married, and she never would have rid herself of him.

Instead, Chihiro chose to wait until the river was officially restored. The official summer day, set at noon, she was hard to pick among the crowd of hundreds. The current mayor (who was not the candidate that promoted the project) was there with spectators and others who just wanted an excuse to get out of work and party. Chihiro beyond ecstatic; she just sat stunned at the river's dry edge, away from the crowd. It was hard to believe that her dream was finally coming true.

The workers had dammed up the spring that fed the old river when they had first filled it in. Now, far upstream, they were slowly tearing the dam down. Chihiro watched for several hours, unmoving, only gaping at the water that was slowly covering the rock-based riverbed. It wasn't until pitch dark, when nearly everyone had gone home and the river was at its fullest height that she began to panic.

The river had returned, but the spirit had not.

She mumbled, eyes watering, hugging her knees to her chest at the river's edge. In a fit of madness, she starting whispering her friend's name. She reached out towards the river with an open hand, crawling on her hands and knees, tears now ran freely down her face. Ice cold water met her small hand and she still continued moving forward. Seconds later, she had no choice but to start swimming.

If only she had known what I knew.

She was thrashing, disoriented, but never cried out. Slowly, she was falling into the water as her body tired and her hopes died out.

* * *

I adore e-mails, reviews, etc.  
I have an idea of where this story will go, but any thoughts/suggestions/comments could help mold it into something better...updates are going to be very frequent. 


	3. Certain Requirements

I've never met a single person ready to jump out of a warm bed, ocean waves lapping in the background, in comfortable darkness, and coming out of a peaceful deep sleep.

Chihiro was no exception. She had firmly snuggled deep within the soft fur-made nest, another testament to how well she had slept. But I needed her awake.

"Chihiro…" I spoke gently, touching her blanket-covered shoulder.

"Mmmf," was the only response. But, then she started twisting and squinting until the movement abruptly halted. Wide-eyed, the teen was glancing at the far wall on her left. I let out a small chuckle in hopes that she would notice me on her other side. Opals opened further in shock.

"I died?" she croaked, a very unbecoming sound for such a lady.

I only shook my head as I felt her size me up. Standing before her, I was only about 5'4", slender (not quite skinny), a lightly tanned skin color, past shoulder-length straight hair that was almost black (but light enough to be considered brown). I gave her a slight smile, hoping my black kimono-like uniform wouldn't lead her to the conclusion that I was "evil".

Shocked features gave away to a bright smile as she announced, "You're a dragon!"

Surprise is always a delightful emotion and I broke out into a bigger smile. So, she had absorbed more than I had originally thought on her trip and was quite observant. The only way you can mark a dragon in human disguise is either by their actions, if you know them, if you are one, or if you look into our eyes. A dragon has enhanced senses in any form and our eyes have a unique shine that reflect our different eyesight.

"Why don't you wash up and change into something more comfortable?" I suggested, gesturing towards a doorway. "You can call me Kira. When you're done, just go through the other door and you'll find me outside."

It was easy to see she was dying to ask more questions than I had scales with her pleading eyes and pouted lip, but I left before she could even begin.

* * *

I rarely ever count the passing of time, it doesn't really affect me. Lazily sunning myself in my larger form, I was confident Chihiro wouldn't really care. You'd probably guess that I'd prefer cold dark mountains because of my raven black hue, but I actually made my home on a tropical island.

Crunching noises woke me from my daydreams, the sound of Chihiro walking up to me on the beach. I lazily rolled over onto my stomach, shaking the sand from my long mane. Apparently, Chihiro thought something about this action was very amusing.

"You," giggle, "look," gasp, "like a big dog!" she barely managed to stifle out. I gave her a dragon's equivalent of a smile, teeth showing and lips pulled at the corners. She gave another gasp at my reaction and I started to laugh. She realized my harmless reactions for what they were and smiled back.

Folding her legs beneath her, I instead rose and grabbed a leather sack from the beneath a nearby palm tree with my teeth. Holding it within her reach, she gladly took the package. Inside, there was a container of milk, strange fruit from the island, and cooked fish.

As she finished the milk I provided, I broke the comfortable silence.

"Kohaku has been forbidden to see any humans," I spoke, the sound like the voice of a human, but my mouth unmoving. Her eyebrows rose as she realized I could speak in dragon form. "After quitting his job as an apprentice, his mother found out and ordered him back to her territory. He is currently locked away, a punishment for his actions, although it might have been worse."

"What do you mean?" was her soft reply.

"Lucky for Kohaku, his mother has been barren since his birth and he is the only male offspring she ever produced," I spoke as gently as I could. The ocean kept rolling, soothing her as she struggled to accept what I told her. She never doubted my honesty. Her eyes, which had been downcast and focused on one spot suddenly, met my gaze.

"I know you pulled me out of the river, you've been watching me for a long time. Why? And, are you willing to help me again? I'd do anything to be with Haku!" was her declaration.

"Kohaku, or Haku as you nicknamed him, was my best friend as a dracling. I know the ordeals you both went through and I've tried to protect you because I know that is what he would wish," I was suddenly feeling the weight of time on my scales. "You really don't know what you're asking when you say you want to be with Haku," I began on another note.

She only shook her head, and I was met with the stubbornness which was a part of Chihiro that my friend adored so much. I was far too experienced to try to even budge the girl. I gave a great sigh.

"What must I do?" she asked suspiciously.

"Become a dragon."


	4. Stealing Deodorant

I cannot imagine an easy way to tell someone they must die. The human television programs make it look _so easy_. Chihiro now knew that she needed to become a dragon in order to be with Kohaku, but she didn't understand the very difficult process. After all, if it were easy, then everyone would be a dragon.

Sitting on the beach, knees drawn up to her chest and arms folded on top, Chihiro had a mask of deep concentration. I craned down my neck, giving her a soft nudge with my snout.

"How?" was whispered, barely audible to even my keen dragon ears.

My frame shook as I gave a great sigh, "First, you need to understand what the consequences will be."

Arms unfolded, she twisted to sit on her knees and brought both eyes to meet mine with a sharp look.

"First of all, you will have to get used to the body of a dragon. It is very hard to be able to control your powers and temper, let alone the weird stuff."

Eyebrows narrowed, she gave a slight grin. I rolled my eyes.

"Molting during season changes, needing to sharpen your claws, NOT biting your tongue (I've nearly sliced my own off….), rituals, guarding, territory, the list goes on!"

"I can do that."

"And kangaroos wear green pantyhose."

"WHAT!"

"Exactly."

"Oh, never mind. What else?"

"You have to take an oath of supreme justice, wear dirty underwear for three weeks, and stop Yubaba from her latest plot- stealing the world's supply of deodorant!"

The small girl's eyes nearly popped out of her head.

I gave an even bigger draconic grin than before.

"Are you ever going to tell me?"

"Ok, ok. I don't know if you'll ever be able to come back to the mortal plane. You'll be able to visit, see them as apparition, but it is highly unlikely you'll ever truly see them again," I replied with a more serious expression.

Chihiro looked extremely heartbroken. After her trip to the spirit world, Chihiro's mom became pregnant. This was a terrific surprise because she had been declared permanently barren by mortal doctors. Surviving a trip to the spirit world typically leaves humans with some gifts, healing is very common.

At the age of twelve, Chihiro was still very happy to have a baby brother, Bade. From the time he was a baby, Chihiro knew Bade was special. There was something about his gaze that made anyone in his presence feel as if they were looking upon the next emperor. The child was very smart, but adored Chihiro more than anyone else. She played with him, helped him with homework, and drove him around town to meet his friends. He also seemed to know Haku.

Bade once spent the afternoon at the tender age of three drawing very realistic looking white dragons. He absolutely refused to draw anything else but scribbles and his mother was convinced he was drawing the pictures from Chihiro's frequent bedtime stories. When Chihiro saw her dragon on the pages, she asked Bade for a copy. She always kept hidden a particularly impressive drawing of a white dragon flying away in the sky on her nightstand.

"Can I say goodbye?" she pleaded.

I nodded.


	5. Chasing the Moon, Chasing the Sun

It was great to be able to fly again.

Deep orange brightened the sky with a tint of red as the giant orb dropped closer to the ocean depths, its magical warmth enough to satisfy the girl on my neck.

"How far did you say it was before we cross into the mortal plane?" she spoke into my sensitive ear a hint too loud.

"We just left, the journey will only take an hour," I spoke into her mind.

She seemed content with the answer and held tighter to my horns. Chihiro couldn't see the orange dot closing on us quickly. _Since when did "Lord" Fire become faster than me?_

My original plan had been to out fly the larger dragon through sheer speed. I had been much faster than my eternal stalker, because I was a female, and I had more magical power. The brute was a lesser spirit of the sun and was very intent on gaining the affections of a certain moon spirit. Then again, Fire hadn't bothered me in several weeks. Perhaps his missions had granted him further power. I really didn't want to know.

I did have to admit, he was quite handsome. He had scales of flashy orange/yellow mix and an almost red mane. The problem was his attitude. He wanted to literally own me and have access to my powers. Sick.

Normally, I could handle the bully. However, I had Chihiro to worry about and the sun was still up, adding to his strength.

"Kira, is that another dragon?" broke my thoughts.

I gave a growl; he would overtake us before the border.

"Stay quiet. No matter what this dragon says to you, _never_ look him in the eyes."

I could feel the shifting of her head in a silent acknowledgement. If she looked him in the eyes, he could blind her, if he wished. Ah, the perks of being a Sun Lord.

"Kira, Pet, what a surprise to see you out here….and with a guest!" came the honey-coated words.

Another growl came from my vocals, much louder than before.

"Oh, come now Pet! You insult me! You're guest is free to look upon me, even though she might be rubbish. There must be some reason as to why she is allowed to ride the back of a Moon Goddess such as you. Are you using her to practice being with me?"

"Shove it Fire." I spat, slowly losing my temper.

Before I even saw him move, he went from trailing behind me to crossing directly in front of my path. I barely had to time snap my head up and miss the arrogant brute.

"I'm not taking no for an answer today, Pet."

"And I'm afraid I have no time to reject you, yet again, today, Dusty!"

Maybe if Chihiro hadn't been on my back, I could have moved. Unfortunately, I did not. There was a painful pinch as flesh was bit into on my shoulder, just behind Chihiro. My orbs began to glow an eerie black as I let out a pained roar.

_Oh moon!_

There was screaming as I plummeted towards the ocean for a few seconds.

"Kira!" Chihiro called.

I halted our descent, climbing back up the ladder of air currents. But, Fire was behind me, delicately scraping my scales near my rear legs.

"Jump off Chihiro!" I screamed in her mind.

She leapt almost instantaneously. Once she cleared, I whipped around towards Fire and made a snap at his throat. His orbs widened and he managed to dodge and scratch my muzzle deeply.

"Enough Pet. I own you!"

Rather than make a grab at me, he dropped straight down, straight for Chihiro.

"No!" I bellowed.

He caught the girl easily between his claws.


	6. No was too complicated for him

The thought of dying really doesn't scare me.

Then again, I am a spirit, a nearly invincible one at that. Chihiro, however, was clearly petrified. Her frame was tense and she looked back at me from the grasp of the giant lizard that held her.

Fire had now turned towards his domain. I was pushing myself to catch him, straining muscles and trying not to lose my control as he pulled further away with his prize.

Everything had gone wrong.

My whole existence had been fruitless.

I was the soul of Chihiro's sister, the younger sibling who died at birth. I had been the reason why our mom had been barren. I don't even know what I did, but one of my spirit friends told me that I was reborn as a dragon spirit to make up for whatever crime I committed in my former existence. Well, I sure don't remember, but I'd do anything to make it up to my family.

Fire's jungle-covered coast came within sight. It was a beautiful territory, part of a seemingly endless continent. The climate was that of a rain tree forest, dark and beautiful.

"Fire, you know that I'll never submit to you. Why don't you court another sun spirit? Besides, harming that human will only serve to piss me off," I warned.

"You know I won't do that. Be my mate and the girl goes free."

Chihiro had been transferred to the tail of the great serpent. She looked like she was going to be sick; the tail wrapped her tightly as it whipped east and west.

Running at him from the moment my claws felt sand, I made a faint snap at his neck the instant I landed, but concentrated on nailing him with my sharp daggers. Success! His neck moved from my reach, but I now had my right claw deeply into his left shoulder.

His cry filled the air.

I leapt off of his shoulder, pushing down to add more pain as I jumped, and twisted my head towards his still raised tail. Chihiro was being tightly squeezed, and I clamped down on Fire's tail only a foot from my beloved sister.

With his long snake-like body, Fire twisted and slammed into the back of my head with something hard. I was effectively stunned, but held on. The next few blows were some of the most painful I ever experienced in battle. Fire tore into my hide with both front claws and slammed into me with his thick skull. Then, he grabbed the back of my neck with his teeth. My instant natural reaction was to go limp, as any youngster will do when its parent lifts it by the scuff of the neck.

I was dropped to the ground before he did something that would forever brand him as a monster in any book.

He grabbed my right dragon-arm in the crook of his powerful jaws and twisted it well past the breaking point.

In a crippling amount of pain, I was incapable of any movement or real thought. Fire let me go and brought his tail towards my head, Chihiro still in its grip. She was barely hanging on. Dull eyes and hoarse breathing alerted me that Fire was suffocating her. I was having trouble breathing myself.

"Why? Why do you resist me? Now look at you, ruined! Your ugly dark red blood is everywhere! The only thing you have for your efforts is a crippled arm and a dying girl. I can't even take you for a mate anymore, you're ruined!" he roared to the now-setting sun.

It took several seconds, but I was on my three good legs. And, mine wasn't the only blood-coated hide.

Now, my survival mode took over. I was once again filled with strength; tonight was the night of the new moon, my side of the moon. He seemed to finally register everything and took a few steps backwards.

I let out a blood-curdling war cry and charged my challenger. It is the natural right for any female dragon to reject a male suitor, Fire had gone too far.

His pride refused to let him run. He met my charge with wide orbs and dilated pupils.

I was only running on three legs, but it hardly showed. The pain had stopped for the moment and the power from the moon aided me.

We clashed roughly chest-to-chest. Rising on his rear legs, he made to come over my head and tear at my neck. However, I struck his belly first. It was a bloody picture. One dragon stretched towards the sky while another had claws and teeth sunk deeply into the belly of the other. He let out a low moan.

Holding on tightly, I twisted my head enough to look at him with one eye while still holding on. He matched my sharp gaze with a dull one. Then, his lips pulled back with a mock draconic smile. An ugly laugh filled the air. Angered, I bit deeper, but he had the last laugh. His tail curled around over me and he took Chihiro in his jaws.

I dropped my grasp on his stomach and struck his exposed neck faster than I ever knew I was capable of moving. He was dead almost instantly. Chihiro let out a scream.

I slowly and carefully lowered the upper half of the corpse to the sand. After resting it, I reached up towards the head. With only one claw, I could never pry open the jaws. I was forced to hold his bottom jaw with my teeth and push the top jaw open with my left claw. As soon as that was done, I looked back at my sister.

Chihiro was an outright bloody mess. She would never survive.

"Kira," she panted.

"Shh, you're going to be alright."

"I know who you are."

I nodded, fighting not to wail.

"I'm more than happy that it will be you that will be with Kohaku. I'm just sorry Bade may never see you again."

She was struggling to hold on. Her eyes fluttered and she was trying to mumble something else.

I had never counted seconds before until that moment.

Exactly fifty-five passed until her body ceased its movements.

* * *

Author (Slightly Haunted): So, very different, huh? I'd love comments/suggestions/whatever.

A special thanks to LadyRainStarDragon for the reviews. Check out her work, it's awesome :)

* * *


	7. Is there a manual?

From the moment she opened her eyes, Chihiro knew something was wrong.

It just isn't natural to be able to focus on a tree hundreds of yards away and suddenly be able to inspect every millimeter of it, like placing a microscope against it. The smells were overwhelming too! She was only breathing, but she could detect and classify hundreds of smells around her.

Rolling over, Chihiro looked at the ground and started to laugh, it was at least ten feet below her.

Kira had done it! She was a dragon!

Carefully, she stood up on four (yes, four) legs. It was very difficult at first, coordinating where each limb needed to go, but very easy once she was in the rhythm. She focused on getting over to the giant ocean, yearning for a look at her new form.

The waves obscured the water too much, so she was content to look at herself as best as she could. Her body was exactly like Kira's and Haku's from what she could see. However, her coloring was quite different. Rather than a plain white with a turquoise mane or a glossy black, Chihiro was a very bright peal color with a matching mane. Her scales shone brightly and had a pink sheen as the sun rose.

_Oh boy, I forgot Kira! Wait, shouldn't I be dead? I remember trying to tell her something….._

"Rrrroar!" was all she could muster from her vocals. With a very bewildered expression, Chihiro cleared her throat for another attempt when something caught her eye at the edge of the rain forest. There sat one of the strangest looking creatures she'd ever seen. He was even larger than the lions she had seen at the zoo. The beast looked like the body of wolf on steroids, had the coloring and gloss of a raven, and a six inch horn on the end of his nose. Bright blue eyes watched her from where he sat.

"You cannot see Mistress Kira," he spoke without moving his lips, just like the girl.

Chihiro growled.

"Focus your thoughts at me, you'll find speaking very easy."

"Where is my sister?" she managed, hoping it reached the exotic wolf.

"She is no longer here. My name is Raider, I have been ordered to be your guardian."

"What do you mean? Kira won her battle, her arm was only injured…." she trailed off.

Raider padded towards the much larger creature. With a deep bow of his head, he then gazed up at the dragon.

"She moved on. Her powers are now yours, Mistress."

Chihiro dropped to the ground, craning her head towards her chest so she could cover her head with her paws. The black wolf-creature growled.

"What?" Chihiro asked between her half-whimpers, jerking her head up. "I just barely got to know her, now she is dead! On top of that, I won't ever see my brother again, and don't know how to find Haku!"

"Ask me."

One of the dragon's eye ridges raised. She craned her neck closer. "You're serious? Just like that?"

Raider sat back on his haunches, a deep sigh sounding from his chest. "Of course." _She doubts my abilities? She isn't anything like Kira._ "You need to rest first. You may be a dragon, but you just gained that form."

With a very large yawn, Chihiro confirmed the beast's suspicions. She stomped around the sand beneath her, circling a few times, and curled onto the soft beach sand. _Did I just do what Bade's dog does?_

"Will I be safe?"

The wolf cocked a grin. "Isn't that part of a guardian spirit's job? Besides, you don't have any deodorant for Yubaba to steal," he called behind him as he disappeared into the forest.

Chihiro snorted.


	8. A Dragon's Smile

"Raider?"

"….."

"Raider…"

"……….."

"Raider!"

"Grrr, yes Chihiro?"

A very grumpy wolf lazily opened one eye to glance up at a snake-like dragon. It had taken Chihiro at least an hour (by her estimates, more likely fifteen minutes) to find the midnight-hued beast dozing beneath a giant rain forest tree. The sun had risen a few hours before. Chihiro was eager to find Haku.

"Wolf ogres simply do not function before the sun is halfway done," he said, rolling over.

Chihiro frowned at this.

She sat on her haunches, feeling awkward because her front legs were still positioned as if she were standing, her body was simply too long. Well, if she was indeed his "Mistress", then didn't she get to decide when they got up?

She left.

She returned five minutes later and stood directly over the beast.

"I'm warning you," she spoke through magic.

"Grrr."

Within two seconds, a large amount of water soaked the beast, and a black streak shot up fifty feet of bare tree and onto an empty branch accompanied by a very undignified yelp.

Two eyes the color of a blue sky glared down at her with a look of death. The individual who was the focus of the nasty glare simply stuck her snout in the air and held her tail high. Walking away from the raven-hued beast, she called back, "Just to be fair, I did give you plenty of warning."

The wolf ogre did not find that amusing.

* * *

later that day 

"You'll find that you really don't eat as much as you should expect for such a large form. A dragon's body feeds primarily off of the world around it. In your case, you will need to try to stay outside at night, or at least somewhere that will give you access to the moonlight."

"Even when the new moon is out?" she interrupted him. Raider was enjoying her lack of knowledge of the spirit world a little too much. His wolf-face frowned. Raising his chin a little higher, he continued.

"Yes, although the energy from it might not be quite as strong, since you appear to be a light moon dragon."

"Oh….Kira, she was a dark moon dragon?"

Raider gave a half grin.

"You're catching on."

"So, back to Haku, when do we leave?" There was a dark look that flashed across Raider's face which Chihiro did not miss.

"Chihiro, I just received news from a raven spirit friend of mine. I've already requested an audience with Kohaku's mother, Mara. She is a very vengeful spirit and hates the human that stole her only male offspring's heart. She'd kill you, given the chance," he solemnly spoke.

"Does she know where I am?"

"No."

"Does she know I'm a dragon?" Raider had to smirk; she was already adopting many dragon traits, including pride in herself.

"Nope."

There was a draconic grin about her features, a look that would have sent Yubaba running. Too bad Raider had seen her sister with the same smile.

* * *

Slightly Haunted : Maybe I'll add just one more chapter today...I like to break them down...please feed the review-eating dragon spirit that lives in my computer, thx. 


	9. Orge wolves aren't meant to fly!

"Raider, why can't he just fly away?" the young dragon in human form questioned.

But, there wasn't anyone behind to her to answer.

She looked back towards Haku. The once summer scene was now a winter one. There was an enormous dark lake surrounded by dark forests and a white dragon had been in the center. Now, the slopes were covered with thick snow and the lake was frozen over.

Thumping sounded from the center of the lake, loud enough that she knew only one possible source.

Chihiro ran as quickly as she could towards the noise under the ice. The vibrations got louder. The ice was covered by two inches of snow and when she got to the source, she began shoving the snow away with cupped hands.

An unnaturally clear layer of ice lay beneath her.

The head of a dragon slammed into where she was again.

"Haku!" she screamed.

The form locked eyes with her for a brief moment. Then, it faded away to a human shape. He touched the ice with his hands.

Chihiro jerked her hand to where his was. Tears spilled down her cheeks.

He mouthed, "I love you!"

She returned the reply, screaming it aloud.

The boy under the ice shuddered violently, wrapping his arms around himself before he sank below.

"Haku! No!"

Something was nudging her face, but she saw nothing there. Chihiro opened her eyes. Two worried blue orbs filled her vision.

"You were dreaming Chihiro."

The girl blinked several times, sitting up. She looked down at her hands—human hands. She felt numbly cold and her hands were flushed red. The ogre wolf looked her over, finally resting his muzzle on her knee as he lay down.

"What happened?" she croaked, her voice strangely sore.

"You must have dreamt during your little nap. When a dragon dreams, often times the dream affects you in the physical realm as well. I've never heard of anyone dying, so don't worry, but that would explain why you're cold when it is well above 90° here."

"Oh."

"Did Kohaku die?" he questioned without opening his eyes.

This startled Chihiro, "Yes."

He huffed before standing up, giving her a lick on the cheek.

"I need you to transform back to your dragon form. All you need to do is wish for it to happen."

Within seconds, the human-looking girl was back to her "real" form. The change didn't rid her of her cold, which she took note of.

"The sun is now done with ¾ of his journey. We can go."

* * *

Chihiro had known flying was exciting, but being able to actually control it was beyond her wildest dreams. It was so natural for her, twisting the way Haku had to stay afloat. She did her third twirl in the air, when a half yelp reminded her of her passenger.

Poor Raider was clutched between her two front paws. His stomach had threatened to dump its contents several times already.

"Do that again, and I won't hold back. Don't think I won't miss."

She was hit with another laugh, which she relayed to Raider mentally.

"I'm not meant to be awake in the morning, I'm not meant for water, and I'm _not_ meant to fly!" moped the ogre wolf.

"Well, how did you travel before?"

"I can travel very well on land, thank you!"

"Across continents?"

"Grrr."

They traveled in comfortable silence for awhile. The sun finally set.

"What's Mara's place like?"

"Oh, it's cold. There are tall mountains, steep valleys, and rapids are very common. Her home itself is inside one of the mountains. You'll see."

"Are you getting fuzzier?" she suddenly questioned, looking down at Raider.

Indeed, the coat of the black spirit was a great deal longer, especially around the neck. Orbs widened as she tried not to laugh at the beast that looked a great deal like a lion/wolf cross.

"Hey! I need to adapt. Forgive me, oh great Goddess for being but a mere guardian spirit," he grumbled.

"What did you call me?"

"A Goddess."

"Why?"

"Well, you are the spirit of the moon!"

"Why doesn't anyone _ever_ tell me anything? Aren't I a minor spirit, just like Fire?"

"That rat spirit? Ha! He could never handle that much power! Ramsi, the sun God, is a dormant spirit. He is literally inside of the sun, so he needs help from other spirits to do tasks that he cannot fulfill himself."

"So, what tasks must I fulfill?"

"You, Chihiro, did not inherit your sister's responsibilities. She set that up for another. You just get all the wonderful perks."

"Eventually, though, I do inherit them?"

"Well, maybe. I wouldn't worry about it now. If it happens, it happens."

"Geez, I get the shaft with every contract I sign." _Note to self: investigate whether spirits learned about adding the "fine print" in contracts from humans or if it was the other way around._

_

* * *

_

Please be kind, review.

This is really bad, if you're reading my story, I'd love to know! I'm writing a stinking load almost everyday, but have only received reviews from two people (whom I adore!)_  
_


	10. Blood, monsters, and creepy woods

Raider had insisted that they land the moment he saw the earth. The unfortunate brute stumbled about, running deep into the woods.

"I'll…(mumble)….back!" she barely caught.

For a spirit that had a lot of pride, he was definitely taking a beating.

Chihiro only gave a slight grin before looking around. The forest was entirely covered with a very strange type of tree that she had never seen before and had a feeling was only to be found in her new realm. They had a dark red bark that was very smooth and star-shaped leaves with a pearl color much like her own scales.

Inspecting one of the trees up close, she noted that they were easily twice her length (in dragon form) tall. They were also spaced at least ten feet apart, more than enough room to walk through.

_This is SOOO weird! Why aren't there any leaves on the ground, only short green grass?_

The dragoness abruptly halted her train of thought as a fresh scent caught her nose. Frozen in place, her lungs pumped noisily, and her lip curled up to catch the scent for a better inspection.

_Oooh! That smells so, bird-like? _

Into full stealth mode, she lowered her body close to the ground and concentrated on a spot far in the flat woods. It took a few seconds, but her vision finally focused enough to present her with an image of a creature known only to her though popular folklore.

A griffon!

The enormous beast had the body of a lion, but head, wings, and legs of an eagle. A shiver went from her snout to her tail in excitement. Across from the strange being was Raider. He stood almost nose-to-nose with the winged beast, seeming to talk with it.

For all of two heartbeats, the griffon turned to look in her direction. She froze.

Her beloved friend seemed to be suddenly possessed by some terror. He silently leapt at the Griffon, snapping at its neck so fast that Chihiro would never have caught it as a human. The ogre wolf nailed its target, the griffon had been distracted by Chihiro's presence.

Raider was deathly silent as he clung on, but the bird-beast was trying to make a cry, only succeeding in whispered screeches.

"Roar!" Chihiro bellowed, trying to scream at him. Face-faulting, she tried again with her new communication skills, "Drop her Raider!"

The griffon was now tearing into the raven beast as best as she could while he held on and desperately used his own paws to try to block some of her swipes.

Chihiro found herself flying over the ground at a dangerously close level. But, seconds later, the winged-creature shuttered as Raider dropped her to the ground.

Mouth covered with bright fluid as the excess dripped to the ground, the ogre wolf panted heavily. Rather than a smooth coat and slightly raised tail, his mane was puffed out near his neck and along his spine, and tail curled over his back. The blood stained the bright grass a deep shade of red.

"You are a monster."

"So unlike you?" he spat with sarcasm.

Chihiro's growl filled the air.

"If I had not killed it," he began.

"She would be alive," the dragon finished.

It was the ogre wolf's turn to snarl.

"You would be dead! You have no idea how dangerous griffons are. I had been trying to get her to fly away, but you gave yourself away when you looked upon her!" anger filled the voice.

She huffed, puffing her chest out. _But, I've never seen anything die like that! How can I look at you and not think "killer"?_

The raven brute turned his back to the dragon, tail resuming its normal position.

"I need a bath."

Without question, she followed him deeper into the woods.

It was a long walk.

It took a very uneventful hour in the extremely creepy forest. Nothing changed. Uncannily spaced trees, green grass, more weird trees, etc, etc. There were no sounds, no broken branches decaying, not even a single bug was to been seen.

However, a tiny river eventually broke the clearing, filling her ears with its wonderful melody. Raider very cautiously approached, she could now see him straining to keep weight off his front right paw. His gaze flashed to her and he shifted his weight evenly.

"Yes?"

"Raider, let me see your paw…"

He looked ready to put up a fight, but she transformed into her human body. Guiding him into the river, she carefully helped wash his back and held his paw up. Tearing a small piece of the oddly real t-shirt she wore, she did her best to wrap his paw, hoping to cushion it.

"We should sleep," she suggested.

Retransforming, Chihiro gently tucked her canine friend in the crook of a powerful forelimb. Hoping along, she still managed to circle in one spot three times before laying down. Raider nestled next to her side, finding himself quickly coiled around as the dragoness attempted to keep him warm.

They slept quietly, both under the half-light of the moon.

* * *

Reviewer recognition! Ha, you thought there was more to this chapter: P 

Here are my responses/praises for the people who are willing to admit that they read (and some even like!) my writing :)

**Kitty00240**: thanks! I'm assuming that you enjoy fairy tales….LoL…I think you gave me a compliment.  
**AmI#3?**: I'm writing about 2-3 chapters every Monday/Tuesday/Thursday/Friday….it's been less than a week and I've got about 9 chapters!  
**Princess of Animation**: -blush-, I really thought the poem stunk, thanks for the much-needed reassurance  
**KiKi**: I strive to be original! I even try to avoid reading other fanfiction as to keep from copying ideas…..I do plan on shocking everyone now and then ;)  
**Micrll**: I highly doubt I will stop writing _anytime_ soon! Thanks for taking the time to write a review, most people have no idea how uplifting they are!  
**LadyRainStarDragon**: thanks again for the multiple reviews! Yours is the only fanfiction I'm taking the time to read at the moment…..

Recognition for the 2 reviewers for "Haunted by You"

**VanRulesFanelia**: some of what I write will be shocking/depressing, I try to write things that are original and sad endings are sort of rare….  
**CagalliFan**: ooo, thanks! I hope you're reading my other FF 

BTW: I think I look as forward to the reviews as some of the people do to my writing (at least, I hope!). Hehe.


	11. Meanwhile

Six bloody years is a long time in a cage.

Even for an immortal.

Haku (or Kohaku, if you prefer) lay trapped in an earth cage. Forced to crawl in the dirt, he spent hours investigating the tunnels he inhabited, always searching for a way out that magic did not block. For the young river god it was almost unbearable. He was even beneath the worms that slunk below the surface, but at least they had a job to do.

His body was even beginning to betray him, but the eternal darkness denied him the right to visually see that. No longer did his coat shine with the luminescence it once possessed; it was a dull gray color and vast black splotches covered him randomly. The once proud teal mane was thinning and flopped over.

However, the cause was not the elements so much as the distress it caused. The black was a physical representation of something eating away at his very soul as the days passed away.

"Kohaku, either you give up the wretched human or I will find her myself and tear her apart!" his mother howled.

No longer did he rebel verbally, the threats were barren. She would have torn the mortal world apart, were she able to get through. Her workers that could travel were unable to detect his beloved Chihiro and were subject to their monarch's fits of rage. As a last effort, Mara had even made peace, albeit temporarily, with his three older sisters.

Marabella, Bella for short, had visited him first. The youngest of the three girls, she had brought several other beautiful dragon maidens on multiple trips. He gently rejected each one, preferring to spend time with his innocent sister. Eventually, she couldn't stand to look at him. She began to stare at him as if he had a chronic disease and was watching him die. Since the last visit, he hadn't seen her in five years.

Then, Nila had stormed in. The fiery dragoness had traveled from her ice-covered home, ticked and ready to literally throw another female at him. Once, she did try, paying a very seductive female to 'stroll' into his tunnels. He had thrown her out. When Nila found out, she was quite pissed, screaming at the top of her lungs that he was a foolish dragon who would die of heartbreak even if he mated with a human. His own temper had snapped. Haku hadn't even gotten so much as a message from her in four years.

It was Sonia who had almost turned his heart. The oldest, and most intellectual of the bunch, she came only to see her brother, at first. The visit itself had utterly shocked him. She had sworn never to speak with their mother again, hoping to evade a fight to the death for causes unknown to him, and moved so distantly that he had been unable to track her.

Of all the dragons in the world, Haku admired Sonia (Sony) more than any other. Her daily visits paused the rancor that blackened him inside and out. They caught up with one another and Haku learned of his soon-to-be dracling nieces and nephews. He realized that there was so much to live for; she knew of several dragonesses his age that could make him happy. No longer could she fight for her little brother, she was lucky even to visit him. So, she offered to 'introduce' him to her friends.

During the week Sony gave Haku to think the proposal over, he desperately came up with every reason possible why he couldn't mate with another dragoness. As the days progressed, the doubt that filled his mind grew. On the final day, he was determined to accept her offer; Chihiro would have moved on long ago.

But, an unforeseen visitor came in his dreams:

"Haku, do **not** tell me that you've held Chihiro's heart captive for over eight years all for nothing!" a black dragoness bellowed.

"_Who_ are you?"

"Snap out of it you stubborn dragon! Who I am is irrelevant. She has waited for you for more than half her life! If you can get your act together, I promise she will come for you."

This seemed to appease the dragon for a moment, but his happiness was run through with a silver sword.

"Mara will kill her!"

"Then you'll just have to save her, won't you?" mocked the female.

"And what if I chose another dragon for my mate? Then, she won't have to come at all!" he snorted.

Haku found himself in a very painful position. It felt as though something was searing his chest, the largest black spot on his scaly hide. Roaring in pain, the sensation lasted only several moments, but left him drained.

"The blackness is what causes you to think such."

"No…..I won't have her hurt," he growled shakily.

"Why do you doubt her love? Why must you question your fate? Here, let me share a real memory I have of her from a short time ago."

"Heh, a dream within a dream?"

"Duh."

**There Chihiro sat on a small dragon-adorned bed. The sheets had brightly colored dragons dancing in the sky, guarding the young boy who lay under them, snuggled next to Chihiro.**

"**Tell me what he looked like Chihiro. I never see him anymore."**

"**Just like the pictures."**

**He smiled, "humor me!"**

"**Alright! He is enormous, at least several cars long, and almost a third of that tall. His face is handsome, sort of like the wolves at the zoo," she sighed, staring out the window. "There are beautiful scales that cover him entirely, a moon-washed white that glimmers and teal tresses that sway when he moves," Chihiro spoke, enchanted by her unseen vision. With a kiss, she assured him, "goodnight Bade."**

**Following Chihiro to her own room, Haku watched as she shut the door slowly, nearly stumbling over a haphazard piece of clothing. She hit the pillow face-first, crossing her arms to rest her forehead against them. The smell of salt wafted in the air.**

**She cried her heart out.**

**Haku began to weep too, wishing desperately to run to her side and comfort her.**

"**You promised…..I'll wait forever Haku," she whispered.**

Snapping out of whatever trance he was in, Haku recognized the soil den he was caged in.

"Don't disappoint either of us Kohaku," echoed the female voice in his mind.

Haku did reject Sony's offer.

Since then, he missed her in the two years she hadn't visited, though she had reassured before she left that she couldn't really be mad at him. From the miserable look in her eyes he understood she wasn't expecting to see him again, ever. _Do I look that bad?_

Now he needed to figure out how to escape from his magical tomb or at least spy on his mother so he could see when Chihiro came.

_So, maybe worms aren't so inferior after all._

_

* * *

_

Slightly Haunted : Alright, so I didn't get a single stinkin' review. I still wrote this fair-sized chapter (it was about three full pages on Microsoft Word, mind you!).

Here's a very important question that I would _**LOVE**_ some input on:

Can I say that Chihiro's home (in Spirited Away, making it also in my story) is in America?

Technically, I do not remember the movie saying Chihiro moved to Japan or lived in Japan. I mean, that town really could pass for something in the USA and I'm fairly unfamiliar with modern Japan. Also, Chihiro and her family look like typical Americans, no offense...fat dad, chubby mom, and skinny girl all with brown hair...

Please respond!  
_-Slightly Haunted_


	12. Questions and answers

( Slightly Haunted ):

I'm sorry, I was unable to write a chapter on Monday. College can suck. Anyways, here is a very….interesting poem I happened to remember when I thought about the last chapter I wrote. Enjoy ;)

_Crazy, crazy,  
I was crazy once!  
They locked me up,  
It was cold.  
I died.  
They buried me.  
The worms,  
They drove me  
Crazy, crazy,  
I was crazy once!_

Anonymous Children's Song/Poem

* * *

Raider loved fighting. 

It had once been the sole reason, he believed, for his existence.

When he fought, he focused on the battle alone. Nothing else mattered. Every fiber of your being is worked to the max. Focus, adrenaline, a sense of domination, the excitement of knowingly risking your very life, all in a matter of a few moments or minutes. Now, however, the champion ogre wolf was distressed. Emotional fighting was not his forte.

The charcoal beast walked slowly ahead of the young dragoness in his charge. She hadn't spoken all morning, but the air between them had lost the comforting silence. Now, a cloud hung over the pair, both waiting for either the storm to commence or pass over.

_Last night she bandaged my paw…maybe she's ok now…_Two blue eyes turned to look at the mythical serpent that trailed behind.

Eyes of a deep rust hue matched his gaze for a heartbeat before quickly looking down at the ground.

The wolf froze.

Putting a large gap between them, Chihiro kept her pace and moved around the gaping brute.

"Raider, I'd like to be there as soon as possible."

She heard him sigh, noting how his ears flattened against his head, invisible in his thick mane as he took the lead once more.

The day dragged on. Raider kept the lead, staying within sight of the river, but far enough away that if something was to come out of it they would have time to escape. Finally, however, the wolf altered their course away from the river and towards a bright white light.

"Chihiro, this only your second time in the spirit world, right?"

"Yea, I spent most of it at Yubaba's bathhouse and traveled on the train to her sister's house. I have to ask, what's up the weird landscapes? I mean, the trees are definitely not from the human world and the climate changed from ocean paradise to lush rainforest to dark forest and…." She paused, "is that snow?"

Now it was Raider's turn to give his own version of a smile, "Yes."

Chihiro stood stock still, orbs wide, eye-ridges raised, and jaw dropped. It was funny how she kept her human expressions even in the form of a dragon.

"Powerful spirits, Lords/Ladies/Gods/Goddesses, whatever you may call them, typically control a portion of the spirit world, a territory. Based on what type of spirit it is, they can manipulate the type of climate their territory is- to an extent."

"So we were in the territory of a Griffin and the snow is another spirit's territory?"

"Yes."

"What happens to the Griffin's?"

"Another Griffin from its family will claim it, unless another spirit acts first."

"Oh."

"Whose territory is this?"

"Mara's."

The expanse of snow was endless. Crystallized water covered the edge of the forest only a few inches deep, but looked more intimidating on the several mountains filling the dragon's vision. Ivory reflected off the bare slopes with only a few scattered pine-like trees. Satisfied that some sort of normalcy was again restored between them, Raider focused again on the route to Kohaku's birthplace.

* * *

( Slightly Haunted ): 

**AmI#3: **I'm glad to see that you're still reading! How was your soccer game? Anyways, I love any criticism, my little spirit dragon can take any flames. I hope that I've answered at least some of your questions about _my_ version of the SA universe. I wasn't sure if you meant the landscape or how about the spirit world is itself. Either way, I'm still working on it. I've really been struggling with my writing lately.

**LadyRainStarDragon: **Unless whatever force (nicknamed the 'little spirit dragon') decides to turn 180° in mid-flight, I believe I'm going to make Chihiro's home in the USA. If nothing else, at least I'll be unique. Thanks for you comments :)


	13. The Return of Sen

There was so much malice in her voice, listening to her border-lining on pain.

Chihiro stood on all fours, waiting for the towering dragoness to finish reprimanding the petite spirit covered in a very dull brown full-length hood and cape, attempting to consult with her.

"Please, Great Goddess, have mercy on us!" the young male voice pleaded, its figure dropping to the ground in submission.

"You've promised to bring me a beautiful dragoness, and yet, I've not been pleased," Mara spat.

"We've brought your son _six_ maiden dragons alone in the past season! If you'd only let the snow melt…"

Mara's roar shook the very mountain.

"How dare you! Worthless castoff! I'll have you **exiled** for disrespect!" she bellowed.

Chihiro stepped from the marble-covered wall she stood next to, leaving a bowing Raider behind. Mara's mustard-yellow eyes dropped the fixed stare she held over the small spirit to Chihiro, seeming to realize for the first time of another presence in the room. The old dragoness sized up the younger, as the younger did to the older.

Mara was a huge dragoness. Her form was equal to Chihiro in height plus another third and was stockier than the younger female. As for length, however, Chihiro was equal, something she took some comfort in. Her coloring was what shocked Chihiro the most. Her scales had the color green that taints the murkiest lakes and was detailed with darker brown splotches.

"I've never met a dragon like you before. What an exquisite color…..Who are you exactly?" Mara purred, stepping past the kneeling hooded figure.

Chihiro carefully trained her eyes on the dragon, switching from meeting her gaze to studying her form. _Raider is right, I feel as if I've been taught how to act around other dragons. I just hope I don't screw up._

"Sen, the appointed Lady of the Moon."

The older dragon gave what could only best be described as a smile.

"I see."


	14. Could use some mustard

"Sssen…..Lady of the Mooon," they hissed in unison.

Blinding grey light seeped from the eyes of the once white dragon.

"Free me!" he roared.

The thousands of worms that joined together in the tunnel to shape into one giant being dispersed in fright and from the vibrations of the cry. Each little creature quickly snaked back to its place to form the giant spirit that was broken among them.

"But why, Lord?" the unified voice questioned, spitting out the title.

The glow increased in intensity and the dragon started convulsing before driving itself against its earth prison. Snarls filled the stale air and the splintered worm spirit backed away. Even with no visible eyes, it still seemed to watch the dragon's useless efforts.

As quickly as a wave laps the shore and withdrawals, the rage in Haku was halted. With orbs still illuminated, he turned to the mass of worms that was equal to him in size. "Why?"

The worm spirit slithered a few feet backwards.

"What are you asking Lord Kohaku?"

"You never questioned why I wished to escape before. Now you seem to be searching for an explanation. Liberation alone is not enough? What are you hiding..." the serpent questioned with a snarl.

The thousands of worms leapt as one towards the dragon. Kohaku could now see somewhat in the darkness though his other senses were also warning him of the advancing army.

The dragon could hear the sucking noises the bugs made while continuously wiggling against one another to stay unified. Worm spirits were splintered into hundreds of little four inch bodies, multiplying with time. To converse with another spirit, they tended to piece together to form one giant worm.

It was easy to hear the incoming mass of worms, their tiny bodies producing enough noise to rival a large hive of bees. Their decaying smell was also very distinct, although it was too overwhelming to detect their advance.

Separating as they made contact with the dragon, the worms slinked over the hide of scales, each one attempting to weigh the beast down or crawl into his body.

Haku opened his jaws to let out a roar. However, little worm bodies crawled into his mouth, ears, eyes, and other places he'd rather not have thought about. Within the time it takes for a humming bird to flutter its wings, the dragon was twisting and snapping at the vermin mummifying him. Luckily, his nostril flaps prevented them from entering his lungs (dragons have nostril flaps to keep water and other elements from harming them when they are submerged). Wiping the few that blocked his nose, he acted like he was going on a very long dive underwater, filling his lungs to the max.

Holding his breath, he snapped at the worms. Haku had never been so repulsed in his life. Several little bodies were squished, but unlike the fish he frequently consumed, they were too small to get many of. So, he swallowed many whole.

The worm spirit seemed to realize that no matter how many worms he shoved down at once, the dragon wasn't going to choke or suffocate. And when Haku let out a petrifying bellow, the worms practically jumped off his body and dove into the ground as one.

The hole the worms had made in their retreat was fairly large. The magic that was keeping Haku prisoner had let the worms dig in and out, it just prevented Haku from digging. Shoving his nose into the hole, the dragon felt the barrier of magic as he pushed through. Without the earth to hold the barrier, the magic protested only slightly before allowing him to pass unharmed.

Scraping talons against hard packed dirt inapt for digging, the dragon frantically made his way towards the surface rather than follow the worm spirit. And when the bruised serpent broke the surface, he let out the loudest scream he'd ever made.

He collapsed on the ground, panting, closing his eyes.

He couldn't see.

* * *

( **Slightly Haunted** ): Am I cruel or what! Hey, I'll try to post the next chapter before tonight...on with the replies! 

**KatzEye**: Yes! I was hoping I wasn't the only one who loves the fuzzy lion/wolf. Thanks for the complements and taking the time to read :)

**Person**: Well, I often have to actually work at work (go figure….LoL) and sometimes do college homework (ewww). I'd rather write short chapters than none at all! I'll write some more tomorrow….thanks!

**Animeangel290**: LoL, I loved the comment. Thanks for reviewing!

**LadyRainStarDragon**: oooo….dang, I'm glad you like my work! I'll be sure to read & review your chapters ASAP!


	15. So close, yet so far?

_She knows! Oh heaven, she knows!_

The voice in Chihiro's head that was setting off every alarm bell was never revealed to the older dragon. Instead, she managed to smother it, focusing instead on the devious dragoness that was questioning everything she could think of about Chihiro.

"The Goddess of the moon! That is certainly a very demanding job. Did you know Kira or how did you come by such a high position? You're so young…." she questioned with narrowed eyes.

Chihiro raised her snout a few inches in the air, "That dragon! Pff! I have my connections. I just happened to be in the area, I had to exterminate the vile griffin that had threatened me when I was only flying over its territory." _Please forgive me Kira._

Mara returned a relaxed expression, walking towards the door that led further into her mountain domain. "Not guarding your flock?"

_Flock…sheep…**subjects**? Oh! That hooded spirit…_

"Unfortunately, no. Most left when Kira died."

"What a shame….mine are overpopulating….perhaps I'll send some to you," Mara commented as they passed down the tunnels side-by-side.

* * *

Raider still sat with his muzzle to the floor in the main chamber of Mara's earth-made castle. He had not once so much as twitched though did applaud Chihiro's performance internally. However, he did wish to tear the throat of the monster, Mara. She treated her people as if they were worthless nuisances! Mara was lucky her fat throat was too wide for him to get his teeth around; her mentioning Kira sent his blood pressure into overdrive.

Cautiously opening a bright eye, the beast began to study the still kneeling hooded spirit.

In the distance, delicate rounded ears rotated to pick up the unmistakable scream of the race his fate was intertwined with. Bolting from the room, he only prayed that somehow Mara hadn't managed to hear the call from deep within her mountain.

The savage ogre wolf practically flew out the intricate marble-covered den with a snarl gracing his lips. _Kohaku, I know that's you._

Dashing over the snow and down the mountain side, the wolf's large paws kept him from sinking deeply. Ahead, he could make out an unmistakable mass of worm spirits. _How on the moon! Worm spirits shouldn't be able to survive in the snow! This must be one of those rare snow types, that would explain why they're black…_

Raider shifted into another gear, increasing his speed greatly as he watched a dragon-shaped mass of worms raise its upper half into the air. There was a second scream that matched the intensity of the first. The worms dropped from a dragon body and they started to spasm on the snow.

The wolf could hardly recognize the owner of the voice. Black patches coated more than three-quarters of the once mighty river dragon. He had definitely grown since Raider last saw him, but he was much too lean. A proud mane now sadly collapsed on one side with the hair thinning. What startled the wolf though was how the unfocused eyes no longer glowed white when he was in danger.

There was only black.


	16. Chestnuts roasting on an open fire

Showing off ivory fangs, a black ogre wolf jumped into the center of the reforming worms, scattering the mass and barely dodging a massive flash of black and white.

Kohaku's massive form was back on all fours and was whipping his tail indiscriminately. A sinister black light bled from his eyes which he kept squinted in the bright light of the afternoon sun. With no pupils, Raider couldn't tell if the dragon could see the tiny bug bodies or if they were just too scattered.

"Kohaku!" Raider cried, jumping over the tail that had swept towards him.

The dragon continued his frantic swings, though any worms that were left now seemed to be wiggling their last.

Raider gave a half-hearted curse under his breath. "Haku!"

A set of long pointed ears swiveled in the wolf's direction as the rest of him stilled. Working his jaw up and down, the dragon appeared to be trying to speak. Only strange growls came from his vocals.

Walking quickly up to the dazed dragon, Raider raised himself onto powerful hind legs and grabbed the nose of the dragon in his powerful jaws.

Dragons instinctively hate anything that controls their movements. Haku's body jerked with seizure-like movements, but the black beast closed his mouth a little tighter. Finally, when the dragon lowered his head closer to the ground, Raider relaxed his jaw slightly but still kept his hold. It took several moments, but the black light faded.

"Raider?" came the mental call. Raider looked at the brute whose eyes were now a familiar light green.

"Are you ok?"

"Yea, you mind letting go?"

Never hesitating, the shadowy monster released his captive.

"Mind if I ask?" the typically not-so-sociable Raider questioned. _I've been around Chihiro too much._

Kohaku gave a slight nod. _Geez, you'd think a moki spirits were using my brain for a drum! Oh my head throbs._

"Why did a worm spirit go after you?"

"I'm not sure. He was asking too many questions and I became suspicious."

"Well, worm spirits are typically fairly docile, but if **it **thought you were going to kill **it**…."

"Chihiro!" he gasped, interrupting Raider.

Utterly horrified, it was Raider's turn to whine as the dragon scooped him up with two talons and flew him back towards the Mara's den.

"No! Kohaku!" he half-growled, half-whined.

It was one heck of a ride. The dragon soared as close to the earth as possible up the steep mountainside and continued his hectic flight straight into Mara's den.

Raider couldn't remember a time when he'd ever needed to pass a meal up (like wolves do for their pups…). He couldn't remember vomiting from a sickness. However, Haku's reckless flight gave him the repugnant experience at least twice. _I swear I'll never eat anything green again! Wait, what did I eat that was green? _At that thought, the wolf almost churned again, but the dragon set him down on the floor.

The nauseous beast didn't even look up.

Kohaku had set his friend at the entrance of the cave, even he was not distracted enough to tune-out the wolf's distress. Continuing on, the dragon increased his speed, tracking the smell of a very familiar dragon and a certain other female. _If Mara so much as pulled a single hair from her mane_…_grr…_

Rounding one of the last turns in the tunnel, Haku barely registered that the scent of the two dragons led him to the deepest chambers in the den, the treasure room.

He dropped to the earth when he finally entered the room.

There was his mother,

there was Chihiro,

both were contentedly chatting next to a roaring fireplace and grooming each others' manes.

* * *

( **Slightly Haunted** ): Ok, I'm tired! Hopefully I'll scrape up enough energy for one more chapter today…..if not, then Monday…..BTW: "moki spirits" will be probably be used later...hehehe ;)

**KatzEye**: no, not quite 'blind'. You'll just have to wait...also, consider that Haku was stuck underground for six freaking years...

**Tai'sGirl345**: LoL, yea, I like to drag things out. Keeps everyone in suspense (insert the ooooo's and ahhhh's). I'm so happy to have more people admit they read this stuff!


	17. Calling in a favor

Now, you must understand that dragons hate to be dirty.

Grooming another dragon's mane is very commonplace, but only done between friends or mates. Kohaku simply dropped to the ground because he had never, ever, seen his mother groomed by another dragon.

Mara sat purring with delight close to the fire and fixed a "so what?" gaze in his direction. The way the corner of her lip curled made him shiver.

Chihiro finished a last strand of hair before looking up at him.

"Hello Kohaku. Do you remember me, Sen?"

Picking himself up from the floor, he struggled to find words.

"Oh, what a mess you are Kohaku! You're going to get dirt all over! And in front of a guest!" her smile was finally replaced with a frown.

"Really, that's alright. Would you mind if I went for a walk? I'd love to see the sunset and get a little moonshine."

Chihiro fixed Haku with an expectant look.

"Uh," stuttered the dragon. "I'd be honored if I could escort you, Lady Sen," he finally managed with a bow of his head.

And without a horrific battle, scream, or even a sneeze, the pair strolled right out the entrance to Mara's den.

* * *

The moment the pair set a foot – talon really – off Mara's territory, Chihiro turned and looked at the developed dragon. She carefully placed a paw out to her near-black companion.

"Want to tell me what happened?"

He gave her a slight smile, taking the paw in his own.

"Why don't we discuss this in my territory?"

With a leap, the pair took flight across the cloudless night, side-by-side once more. She sped ahead, testing his speed. Haku looked beyond ecstatic. Tear flew behind and he had wide orbs.

"I missed this Chihiro." He turned an eye to look at her, "I missed you."

"Haku…..I…..why are there black patches of scales?"

"Honestly, I do not know. This dirt isn't helping either."

It was only a short while before Chihiro recognized an area that reminded her of the rolling grassy hills from the entrance to the spirit world. There was an enormous river running through it.

Kohaku sped ahead, driving into the water, and twirling beneath it. Chihiro flew above him, smiling down. With a quick flick of his tail, he sent a surge of water at the pearl colored dragoness.

"Haku!" she dove in after him.

Gaining on him quickly, she smiled as she twined her snake-like body around his, affectively trapping him.

He returned a smile to her.

"This is heaven. A full moon, cool river, and the one who I've been waiting my life for."

"I love you Chihiro."

"I love you Haku."

Their cheeks rested against one another for a few moments.

"C'mon, I'll get some of that dirt from your mane," she offered with a smile.

Both dragons climbed up onto a grass-covered edge, basking in the moonlight and curled around each other. Chihiro combed his mane and Haku returned the favor.

And one very pissed wolf sat on the opposite bank.

"Y'know, I'm happy you two birds are back together and all, but next time, **don't forget me**!"

Both Haku and Chihiro couldn't help but crack up at the ruffled Raider.

And when a hive of moki spirits (who resemble six-inch tall bears with strange masks) and riding giant bees flew over the couple, both dropped their jaws when the hundreds of little creatures dumped loads of mud on them.

"Oh, boy the way, I called in a favor!"

The ogre wolf grinned.


	18. What's worse than meeting the parents?

"I am NOT scared."

"You're a chicken!"

"I am not a bird, I happen to be an ogre wolf."

"Grrr. Haku! What is the equivalent to a spineless coward?" Chihiro growled to Haku, although her eyes were trained on Raider.

"Chihiro, Raider isn't going to comply."

"Thank-you, Haku," the beast smiled.

And before Chihiro could protest, Haku finished his thought, "Obviously, he would prefer a spirit of a similar gender. Any female would be too much for him anyways."

Jaw-dropped, Raider was spared giving the two dragons his look of surprise. Luckily, he sat with his back turned to the river with the two mythical serpents lounging about in it. The fur along his spine stood up.

"I'm simply not interested. Why would I need a companion? I've got you two to take care of already! Do I really need to hire more moki spirits?"

"Oh, I think there's more to this story than you're letting on….**_don't_** change the subject," the dragoness laughed.

"So Raider, who was the gorgeous spirit hanging out downstream last night? She left about the same time you did…." Haku asked innocently.

Every square inch of hair that covered the ogre wolf spiked as he tensed and turned to face the pair, "What are you talking about?"

"Raider, you couldn't lie to save your fuzzy hide! What's her name?"

Sigh, "….Alena."

Chihiro gave a draconic hoot of victory, Haku only gave a grin. "Spill it!"

"Alena is a….an ogre wolf who used to live with Kira and I."

With a dark glare, Chihiro slid out of the water and onto the grassy bank next to her friend. He held his nose high in the air and refused to look at her.

"Raider, you know you don't have to guard me like I'm your cub! Now, go see her!"

"But I can't Chihiro!"

The young dragoness growled at the wolf that now looked her eye-to-eye. "I'm not completely harmless, you know. Besides, Haku won't let anything happen. Take a few days off, then come back and introduce us."

Raider growled back, "You do realize the extraordinary amount of trouble you **could** -correction- **will** cause?"

Haku finally intervened, "I've got a surprise for Chihiro and you would have difficulty keeping up," he gave a smirk with a wink for the wolf.

"All I care about is meeting your friend when you get back, and pups if you started earlier than I think…" Chihiro gave a wicked smile as the wolf pounced on her but hopped back off as she dove into the river.

"Chihiro!"

* * *

**( Slightly Haunted ): **This little bit of comic relief was inspired by my Dad and family meeting my….boyfriend. I was tortured, but at least it was fun. Dangit, I'm so busy today! I don't know if I have time to write another chapter

**Demonwolf98**: ha, I like your name, it reminds me of Raider. Thanks for the comments!

**LadyRainStarDragon**: yea, Mara is a very complex character. I'm trying to make her somewhat horrifying (I mean, c'mon, what mother-in-law isn't in some way?). Sometimes, being paranoid can save your hide ;)

**Tai'sGirl345**: to answer your question, yes. She turned into a human during chapter 9 (while dreaming) and can whenever she desires.

**Nekokannes**: hehe, thx :)


	19. A few confessions

Chihiro had never felt so powerful.

Dark shadows patched the ground in places were the gentle luminosity from the moon did not touch or when a stray cloud ran past. But, other than the fleeting moments the elements did block the globe, the dragoness was able to absorb the precious light from that full moon. The light was somewhat like the warmth she experienced in human form from the sun. However, as a dragon, the feeling of warmth was intensified a hundredfold and made her quiver from a curious tingling sensation.

Haku smiled, secretly watching the girl sprawled upon the grassy embankment. _It doesn't matter what form she's in. God, she is gorgeous. She can sit there, perfectly content with the world around her, truly at peace. In all my lives that I can recall, I've never met anyone with such a beautiful soul._

A prickling sensation came at the back of Chihiro's mind and she rolled onto her stomach to find Haku watching her with the eyes of a predator from where he rested at the edge of his river. _I love those green eyes of his! I never imagined anyone would look at **me** the way he does! Damn, he looks so possessive, as if someone else would dare try to steal me away…_

With that thought in her mind, Chihiro rose on all fours and leisurely sauntered over to the boy, making sure to twist her snake-like form a little further side-to-side than she was accustomed to.

Haku watched every move the girl made, giving a half-smile when he realized she was showing off a little for him. When she did reach him, the dragon transformed into his second form, climbed out of the river, and watched her for a reaction.

The dragon's human form was very much like it was years ago. He had kept the same hairstyle, his eyes were still green, but he had definitely developed. Although Haku was by no means "bulging" with muscle, he had a fairly lean frame and fairly board shoulders. To put it simply, Chihiro found not only his dragon form, but his human form **extremely** attractive.

_Raider told me that all I had to do was wish for my dragon form…_Repeating the advice given to her by her guardian, Chihiro quickly watched the river and trees appear to grow in size. Her senses dulled somewhat, but she was pleasantly surprised that she kept her "enhanced" senses for the most part.

The girl's head snapped back to Haku when she heard him give a sharp intake of breath.

"Haku, do I look ok? I mean, compared to when I was a real human?"

The young man now kneeled on his knees at her feet, looking up at her with an expression of pure awe.

"Chihiro, I wasn't able to watch you for the past six years, but you still take my breath away."

The girl gave a blush, breaking away from his gaze. Then, she reached down to his kneeling form and held a hand out. Without hesitation, Haku took it gently, following her lead to the edge of the river.

Chihiro leaned over the softly moving river. It was calm at the edge, but the currents were enough to distort the reflection.

Haku took his other hand and touched the water.

The ripples from the dragon's touch immediately halted the currents when they reached them. The river quietly stilled within a few breaths.

"Haku, I look exactly the same as before! Maybe my eyes are a little brighter, but I'm still no breathtaking Goddess! I'm still the plain, brown-haired Chihiro I was before."

Haku pulled her to his chest, picked her up with both arms and spun her around.

"Chihiro, when are you going to see that the skinny, narrow-faced, half-starved mortals aren't 'beautiful'? You, m'lady, are gorgeous."

Completing the spin, Haku brought the girl's forehead to rest against his own.

"Haku, you know that you don't have to say such things, you already own my heart."

"I will never lie to you. You are beautiful. I'd do anything for you."

She smiled, and both reached towards one another, finally touching lips. The boy and girl poured the years of longing and loneliness into the kiss, desperately trying to communicate to the other just how much they had really missed them. The kisses were strong, with brief touches, then parted, then brought the lips back together, never touching for more than a few seconds at a time.

Haku was slowly lowering the girl in his arms to the ground, still continuing the faint butterfly kisses until her back rested against the grass. Then, he lightly kissed along her jaw line, working his way around her earlobe and down to her neck.

"Haku?" she asked with a half-whispered breath.

He gave a light growl that didn't seem to quite match his human appearance.

After a few seconds, he worked his way back up and along her jaw, before stopping and looking into her eyes, trying not to look at the lips he longed to claim.

Both were breathing heavily under the fiery white moon.

"I want you to know that I've never gone beyond kissing," she began as he growled. "Trust me, I could have went a **lot** farther God knows how many times, but I couldn't. It just didn't feel right."

The slim girl gently pushed the still growling boy over onto his back. He stopped when she slipped slender legs on his sides, straddling him. His light green eyes were rather wide and she let out a light laugh.

"Not that I might not have been taking notes," she winked.

"Chi…Chihiro, I don't know how far you plan to take this," his voice strained as he tried to warn her, but was cut off with a long kiss that involved a bit of tongue.

"Haku, I told you, you own my heart. I gave up being a human, my world, seeing my family because I want to be with you."

His soft green eyes seemed to shine in the darkness, "I didn't know if you were sure, but, will you be my mate?"

She gave the boy a wicked smile.

"Yes. So, where did you say you were going to take me when you talked to Raider?"

"Oh, that is going to have to wait for another night, Angel."

* * *

**( Slightly Haunted ):** -dramatic sound effects- so, what did you think? Yes, I am capable of writing stuff fluffy enough to sneeze to death over. Ok, so maybe that was more romantic than fluffy, but that's ok….

**Animeangel290**: LoL, yea…you knew where I was going with that…hehe

**Demonwolf98**: I'm glad you like the fuzzy brute. I really don't give him enough attention sometimes ;)

**Tai'sGirl345**: hehe, that's the only comment? Am I losing your interest? LoL, j/k.


	20. Outta this world

_How could two weeks have passed since I left home? It feels like I was just there._ Chihiro kept pondering over her time spent in the spirit world. And yet, she had watched the moon change from new, when her sister had fought the sun dragon Fire, to its current full state.

"Chihiro?"

The internal conversation within the dragoness broke as Haku twined himself around her body.

"Haku! Make sure we can still fly!"

The dragon grinned at her.

"As if I'd let you fall, hmph. I was surprised you were even able to fly at all!"

Wide-eyed, she gave him a playful tap with a closed paw, "That would've been your fault!"

"I guess I'll have to try harder next time."

"Haku!" she howled.

After the two had spent a generous two nights by themselves in Haku's territory, Raider had mysteriously reappeared on the third morning…

"**I've got some urgent business that I really can't ignore. I'm sorry I couldn't introduce you to Alena, Chihiro. Remember, I am your guardian, so I'm naturally going to know if you get into trouble."**

"**I love you too Raider."**

**The wolf gave Chihiro a cocky grin before running off.**

… Haku's surprise was a visit to see her family. Now, the pair of dragons were on their way to the border between the spirit world and the mortal one. In truth, there was not an actual "border"; they were more like gates located throughout each realm.

"Chihiro, remember that it is much harder to leave this realm than to get into it. You are going to be probed by the gate keeper, just answer everything honestly and you'll be fine."

"What do you mean? Won't you be with me?"

"Well, I can't be. Before my river died, I used it to cross into both realms and never had to use the gate. Now, the river isn't mine, so the gate was sealed, for now."

* * *

The "gate" was a very strange black hole literally floating in the air. Its strange appearance made her think of the black holes she had read about in space. Haku had motioned for her to go first, reassuring her with a promise when she hesitated near the endless looking tunnel.

"Go through the gate, I promise to meet you on the other side."

The pearl-colored dragon carefully approached the strange suspended circle, carefully placing a paw in. Whatever air was in the tunnel was very cool, like the breeze from a body of water. Bracing herself, she hurriedly walked in.

Chihiro had a sinking feeling in her stomach, like she was on a roller coaster ride just approaching the peak. All around her, she could see a strange meadow with mountains and a stream. But, everything was in black and white!

Walking through the valley, it was unnerving how the grass and flowers didn't make a sound. Everything was silent and unmoving, even the trees. And yet, nothing smelled either, but she could feel something about the place that radiated "power" to her dragon senses. Ahead, she could see a mountain that towered over all of the others and only a few minutes' walk away. _This is so Twilight Zone! Dangit, does everything have to revolve around mountains?_

A piercing cry broke the air with a distinct horse-like whinny.

"Turn back now!" echoed off the mountains.

The young dragon kept her pace, heading for what she could now see were a set of doors three times her height at the base of the mountain. She began to run (on four legs…).

And just before she put a claw on the handle to one of the stone doors, she paused.

"Touch that door, jazika, and I kill you!"

"Who are you? What's a jazika?" Chihiro asked, backing a step away from the door and searching the mountainside.

A curious black shape landed next to her, the sound of hooves striking concrete resounding in her ears with an echo, although the creature had landed on grass. It looked like some sort of nightmarish pegicorn.

The beast gave the impression of a large draft horse for the most part. However, there were certain features that were quite hard to miss. He was unnaturally black like Raider, had an extremely long spiraled horn sprouted from his skull which pointed away from his body, long ivory fangs showed as he opened his mouth to snarl at the dragon, and the most interesting thing about him were his wings. They reminded her of a bat's appendages, leathery and large, but they were tattered and torn. They flapped against an inexistent wind as he held them high.

"I am the gatekeeper, imposter. You're the one who killed Kira."

All fifteen hundred pounds of mythical beast glared at her with a look of death.

* * *

**( Slightly Haunted ):** Ok, not much to say today, feel free to e-mail me :)

**Animeangel290**: well, since it is hard to…express one's feelings in dragon form, they were human (I did try to make that clear, sorry!). I sorta left off though, I think you can imply what went on, but maybe I'll expand that upon request ;)

**Tai'sGirl345**: thanks, you had me worried :)

**Heart100**: LoL, glad to help!


	21. A lesson in history

"Chihiro, I'm going to tell you the whole story about your sister. Don't for one minute interrupt me, because you're going to need to hear the whole thing out," the winged brute snapped at the dragon.

Rather than argue with someone that ultimately controlled whether she could see her mortal family again or not, Chihiro sat on the strange gray grass, pointing both ears respectfully towards the pegicorn.

"Everyone is born with a soul.

Now, there are literally two types of souls. The first are called mortal souls. These are the souls of individuals who are born to live only in the mortal world and when their bodies die, either go to heaven or hell.

The second types of souls are called immortal souls, or spirits. Beings like these are typically born in the spirit world, but some are born in the mortal realm. They too have bodies that can die, but where they go depends on what type of being they were. Some go to heaven, some go to hell, but most are reborn in the spirit world or mortal world. In general, these reborn spirits have no memory of their past lives; they simply "start over".

Every mortal and immortal soul goes to an "in-between" realm when they are first created or, if they are immortal, are waiting for another body, or is a soul waiting to be placed in either heaven or hell. This place, often referred to as Limbo, is rarely remembered.

Kira was originally a very powerful immortal soul. Her first form was as a dragoness. She controlled the entire dark half of the moon, which gave her very privileged rights and a nearly invincible body. The being who controlled the light half of the moon and was her mate was a clever white dragon named Raider.

Where Raider was patient and peaceful, Kira was restless and rash. The two symbolized the popular Ying-Yang symbol and were actually its original inspiration.

While Kira wasn't necessary an evil spirit, her restlessness grew over the centuries. She loved Raider, but was devastated when she realized that for a reason unknown to any spirit, that she could not have any pups. Many powerful spirits wrote down or still remember the day that the dragoness attacked the sun spirits.

Spirits typically control a portion of the spirit world if they are powerful or live in a territory under the control of another spirit. When a spirit dies, this territory is transferred to an heir or is fought over. Few fights typically occur over territories, most spirits aren't powerful enough to control an entire territory. However, sometimes spirits take over more than one territory, if they think they would be better suited to rule.

Kira, more out of greed for power than anything else, decided to try to conquer the sun. She told her plans to Raider and although he didn't agree that the sun spirits weren't doing their jobs, she convinced him that it would be better for them to rule rather than a dormant spirit and a bunch of weak underlings. They waited until high sun in both the spirit world and mortal world times and launched their attack.

Each realm experienced the first solar eclipse known to any being. While it lasted only over an hour, the panic in each realm was enormous. Fights broke out, spirits committed suicide, and there was sheer terror among the weaker spirits.

In that time frame, the two dragons of the moon fought with the dragons of the sun. Kira and Raider managed to utterly destroy or dominate every dragon of the sun, using both their dragon forms and magic in their human forms. However, just when the pair thought they had won, they awoke a very ancient immortal.

The true lord of the sun rests literally inside the star, needing help from other immortal spirits to do his tasks. To dominate the sun would mean to dominate the spirit.

The pair was burned to death before they had a chance to retaliate.

Both Raider and Kira stayed in Limbo for several hundred centuries, asleep.

It was determined, by the spirit Axel, a dragon who guides where souls are to be placed, that Kira would be reborn in the mortal realm as a human and Raider was to be reborn as an ogre wolf in the spirit world. Well, Kira was furious when she discovered her "punishment" and decided to cut her time short in the mortal realm. She committed suicide in her fury, tearing her mother's womb and dying before she was even born.

Raider was permitted to learn of everything, as he was mated to Kira, and begged Axel to erase her memory. Raider knew that if Kira didn't carry the burdens of the past, she could start anew, and with a new body, eventually have the pups she so desired. The only catch was with no memory of Raider, she was no longer his mate.

Well, Kira was brought back to life in a body almost identical to the one she died in, but restored. That way, her dragon body was mature, and didn't take two hundred years to develop. She was stranded in the spirit world with no memory, but had the knowledge of what she was and that she was the ruler of the entire moon.

Raider could only watch Kira, swearing never to approach her. However, I hadn't been sworn to secrecy. It is an unwritten law that immortals without a memory cannot be told of their former lives, but I had been Raider and Kira's best friend. I spilled everything and even told the dragoness about her human brother and sister, you and Bade.

Axel wasn't pleased.

Soon after, I was burned with a black fire, turning me from a once angelic pegicorn into this demon form and has sentenced me to guard the gates between the realms all alone.

As for Kira, she found Raider in the spirit world after I told her, and suspiciously enough, in her own territory.

"**Raider," the dragoness began as she walked up to the wolf-like creature sitting inside a cave at the edge of her island.**

"**Please Kira; don't make this any harder than it already is for me. You don't really remember me."**

"**No, and I want you to know that you are free from me. Don't wait around for a spirit that may not be reborn again. After all, I plan on dying quite soon."**

**The beast padded out of the cave, his head tilted in a questioning manner.**

"**I'm going to help my sister, Chihiro. You've heard the story about that river dragon, Haku and how much she loves him. There's only one way a human and spirit can be together."**

"**If you do this, give her your dragon form, you'll die and she may only live in this world for as long as that body lasts! No dragon who has committed such a sacrifice has ever come back!"**

"**And yet, I owe it to her."**

**Raider growled angrily and turned away from her, "you don't even know if this is what she wants!"  
**

**The dragoness transformed into her human shape and walked up to the ogre wolf. She kneeled before the enormous monster, rubbing just under his chin. "I may have lost my memories, but I've never completely forgotten you. I have a feeling that I'm not going to be coming back this time, so I want you to move on without me. I'm sure there's a reason you weren't reborn as a dragon and I'm taking that as a sign."**

**The girl rubbed the glossy horn at the end of his muzzle before kissing the top of his head.**

"**Goodbye, Raider."**

That was the first night Kira went to visit you, Chihiro.

And she was right, a few weeks later, she did die. She sacrificed herself for you.

But, rather than move on, she is currently sitting in limbo," he finished on a somber note.

"I, I…." Chihiro sputtered, turning into her human form.

Dairy, for his part, recognized the sadness the girl. Stepping forward, he wrapped his tattered wings around her, "I'm sorry I held a grudge against you. I just wish Kira could come back."

Chihiro looked up at the tattered beast, placing a hand just below his horn. "I'm sorry you had to suffer for Kira's death. But, the reason Axel punished you wasn't for telling Kira about her past."

The pegicorn was in a state of shock.

Wiping tears from her cheeks, she buried her face in Dairy's neck.

"You let your sorrow eat at you until it poisoned you heart. It's just like Haku, but yours has already torn you apart. He has the black patches and I think it has to do with his mother. At least, that is what something in me says"

"Chihiro, that's Kira helping you out. You know, you can still save him."

The girl looked up from his neck to look at him sideways. Dairy was quivering and slowly dropping to the ground.

"No! I already caused Kira's death! Please don't go Dairy…" she cried but finished with a whisper.

"I'm tired Chihiro. I've done what I'm supposed to do; I told you what you needed to know. I understand why I was so bitter now and would like to see Kira again."

"Wait!" she begged. "Can't you just turn back like before?"

"No, once the bitterness engulfs you, it destroys your heart. The only thing that was keeping me alive was my bitterness. I should've died awhile ago."

She let the horse-like beast lay on his side, but hugged him again.

"You've got to make sure Haku is at peace with Mara, even if she won't return his love. What she did was wrong, and you may always need to fight her, but he cannot continue to hate her like he does now."

"Does he?"

"If he had his way, she would be long dead."

Dairy was quiet as the girl gently pet his head, tracing his long horn.

"Dairy?"

"Yea?" he breathed with a sigh.

"Tell Kira to come back if she can, I know Raider misses her."

"I'll see what I can do."

"And Dairy?"

"….yea?" he took a little longer to answer.

"You come back to."

"You know, I'll see what I can do."

The pegicorn only breathed in and out slowly, before he stilled and faded away.

When Chihiro looked up, the world was again engulfed in the rich colors of a red dawn. She was in her backyard.

* * *

**( Slightly Haunted ):** For some unknown reason, I really like this chapter (hey, I think this is my longest chapter ever!). I think it should answer the many questions revolving around what the heck is going on! 

_**Replies:**_

**Animeangel290**: I like to keep things spiced up, eh?

**Usagi the Mage**: Oh, I'll be sure to tell him, I may start a fan club, j/k ;)

**Rogue Robin**: The whole Yubaba thing with deodorant is just a joke, albiet poor. Hmm, I'm wondering what question I answered, because I had about ten thousand different ones floating in my brain...

**Tai'sGirl345**: It's always great to hear from you. Yea, I do get writers block, but that's when I go off on something else to write about, however crazy it may sound.


	22. Welcome home?

It was in the bright sunlight that a young girl sat sprawled out upon a lush green lawn that was carefully trimmed and nurtured by its inhabitants and was enclosed by several tall trees that seemed to make the border. At the heart of this artificial jungle was a comfortable white house with a westernized style.

While Chihiro and her family were in the spirit world for a year, the little two bedroom house they had originally bought sat empty. Like any typical middle-class family, Chihiro's family had a small mortgage on the home that required monthly payments. Well, not paying a debt for more than six months does tend to upset even the most sympathetic loaners and the bank reclaimed the home while the family was gone.

Upon their return to the mortal realm, Chihiro's father invoked every curse known to man on the bank, until his wife told him about the child she carried. The family moved to a spacious four bedroom home at the edge of the city, provoking Chihiro to believe that her parents had more in store for her than one sibling, but she really didn't mind.

Wondering just how much had changed while she was in the spirit world for the second time, Chihiro trembled from her spot on the ground, unsure if she should go look. The girl crept up to the house, eyeing a large window that looked into where the kitchen and living-room would be. Her movements were slow, as if she was fighting to control her muscles….

A handsome little boy sat in the middle of the living-room floor.

Straight long brown hair just covered the child's eyes as he sat cross-legged on the spotless cream carpet with his hands holding up his face. Another window at the other end of the house permitted the red beams of light to outline his figure.

"Why Chihiro?"

The girl realized she could hear his half-mumbled whispering inside the house.

"Darling Sen, or should I say, Chihiro, how delighted I am to see you again!" a very feminine voice purred.

Chihiro jumped and looked up to where the voice was coming from. A long green dragoness lazily sat atop the roof of her home, partially faded. Slack jawed, Chihiro quickly recovered her wits, the hairs on the back of her neck were rising and her muscles tensed.

"Now, now, Chihiro, no need to attract unwanted attention," she chided.

"How did you get here?"

The dragoness narrowed her eye ridges at the dragon in human form, "I followed you here. Now," Mara spoke as she slid down the side of the house without a sound. "Normally, spirits without a territory here aren't allowed into this realm, let alone an aggressive monster like me. However, once you killed Dairy, there was no one there to guard the gate."

A set of narrow pupils glared at her as Mara walked near Chihiro until the girl was beneath the chest of the dragon.

"What are you going to do?" Chihiro barely breathed.

Mara let out a laugh that was sounding deeper and more inhuman with each syllable. "I've turned your brother into a dragon."

The girl wanted to sigh, but the mocking smile on Mara's face congested that comfort, "Why should I be scared?"

"He hates you."

"Bade is only a child, but we're siblings; he loves me and I won't believe your lies."

The instant her sentence was finished, Chihiro was knocked clear across the backyard. She could only lie on the ground with her orbs squeezed shut, struggling to fight the throbbing in her jaw and concentrating on transforming to her dragon form.

"You abandoned me, killed Kira, and drove Mom to death!" a young male's voice broke the morning silence.

Opening her eyes, Chihiro stood on four paws to face a black dragon like her own form in shape and size but with leathery wings. Sharp yellow eyes glared at her as his tail cracked the air and the serpent seemed to pant.

"Master, how much more pain will there be?" he directed his question at Mara but without breaking his eye contact with Chihiro.

"As soon as you kill Chihiro, it will be gone."

* * *

**( Slighty Haunted )**: Yea, I'm trying to keep up.

IMPORTANT QUESTION: Alright, do I bring Kira back and should she be with Raider?

**LadyRainStarDragon:** Thanks! I really need to go review some of your stories!

**RogueRobin**: hehe, I like Dairy too. Then again, he is friends with Raider...

**Animeangel290**: yes, I tend to come up with strange events. I never even thought of such possibilities until I started to type.


	23. It isn't where the heart is

It wasn't possible. Everything in her mortal-educated mind informed Chihiro that everything that her eyes revealed was fake; nothing was real. _It's just a stupid dream, or a hologram, maybe someone drugged me and I'm hallucinating! Funny, I thought doing drugs would at least make me feel better._

But, reality was two giant lizards staring at her in the face, or rather, her own muzzle. The green one had the creepiest grin; Mara would have fit right in with the bad guys from a Disney movie. Bade was still panting and now licked his lips with an eerily glowing yellow tongue from time to time.

"This is stupid, why would you," Chihiro began.

"Shut up, stupid girl. You will die and pass on to the next life. Just because you have the body of a dragon doesn't mean your soul is going to come back to this realm again."

Chihiro gave her best snarl, "Why should it matter to you whether your son bonds with an immortal?"

Mara slithered so fast from the rooftop that Chihiro barely caught her movements and had time to back several steps, "You really are just a selfish human, it doesn't matter what skin you're in. You will die and move on to the next life, free to do as you please. My son will keep being reborn, for centuries, and if you should truly bond with him, he will _never_ be able to love another. His love for you will last forever, but you won't remember, and thus he will be alone forever."

What could Chihiro really say? The cruel, seemingly heartless dragon did have a valid point which Chihiro had never really thought of before. Lightly stomping one foot, her tail lashed in agitation, "What if I never die? Technically, I could live forever as a dragon."

Pulling back both ears and opening her mouth, Mara gave a cruel deep laugh from her mouth, "You think you're so clever. Don't you remember your sister? She died. All things must eventually perish. True, I've made it for over 3000 years, but this body will eventually crumble. It could be tomorrow, some strange disease could strike you down, war could break out, hell, someone could destroy the entire spirit world!"

This was the time the black dragon decided to speak up, eyeing the pearly dragon with the hungry look of a predator, "I accept whatever my fate is, I will kill you for everything that you have done and will do to others."

Bade leapt forward, passing Mara as if she were another member of the pack, giving her plenty of space should she choose to join in.

_This can't be Bade. His coat is completely black! Is he too infected like Haku is? _From watching Kira fight Fire in the battle that had taken her sister's life, Chihiro remembered the movements they had made almost perfectly. As the black brute made an open lunge for her neck, Chihiro noted how clumsy his strike appeared. In an instant, the light dragon dropped her head and gave a sharp upward thrust. Had she a horn like Raider, Bade's neck would have been punctured. However, Chihiro managed to strike a blow that sent her attacker tumbling to the ground and wheezing.

"That was quite impressive considering your experience."

Mara snarled and circled around Chihiro, opposite where Bade sat.

With a loud bellow, Chihiro screamed, "Raider!"

She took off at a gallop.

No longer did Chihiro care where they were or what country, or even world. The pearled dragon ran past her former home, onto the front lawn and in the blinding sunlight. She didn't stop there; she leapt the twelve foot wide road with ease, increasing speed. Houses were everywhere, but it was summer, and luckily at seven in the morning traffic is almost nonexistent.

_There are going to be people! They can't see me! Raider, where are you?_

Quickly running out of somewhat open backyards, Chihiro looked up and kept running. _I'm running on air! Where is…_

All thoughts ceased as her tail was sharply clamped and something heavy jerked her to a stop. Knocked flat to the ground, her left hip collided with the ground with a sickening boom.

The pressure on her tail released, but she was still dazed as she lifted her head to see Bade towering over her and growling before she lowered it again from dizziness. With the dragoness still lying sideways, Bade grabbed hold of Chihiro's injured leg, rolling her over to expose her belly.

A howl that was a few octaves too deep to be a wolf broke the transfixion Bade had on his sister. He looked to his side to see a very pissed Raider charging him. Chihiro turned her head, noticing Bade's interest in something.

The ogre wolf threw his considerable mass at the dark dragon's shoulder, knocking it off Chihiro before leaping back to her side.

"Chihiro? Chihiro look at me!"

"I'm sorry Raider, give me a second." She begged with closed eyes, raising her upper half and feeling the throbbing pain in her hip crescendo as she stood up completely. But, the girl would not cry out. She turned her head to the wolf and smirked, "I got it."

The wolf gave her a wry smile.

In that instant, the wolf would have been struck dead. However, Chihiro saw Bade's lunge for Raider and she leapt forward to bite the dragon's muzzle and knock him away from the wolf. Both were sent tumbling back and Chihiro kept her strong hold on Bade as he roared in pain.

Once the rolling stopped, Chihiro felt sickened as she identified the coppery taste in her mouth.

"Let go! Let go!" the black dragon roared, beginning to hyperventilate.

Just as Chihiro released his nose, something knocked into the back of her head and sent her crashing back to the ground.

Growling…..snarling….a whine…..all animalistic noises halted but she could make out the shuffling of feet and sickening noise of something tearing and even a tiny splash hitting the ground.

Panting, the dragoness was brought back to her senses when something sharp tore into her shoulder. Blindly, she slashed with her opposite paw and was rewarded for her efforts.

Looking over, she saw Bade clutching his front leg to his chest before he pounced on her. The black dragon swiftly placed his frame on top of hers, making sure to pin her head down with his and put most of his weight onto her injured hip.

"Release me!" Chihiro begged, flailing her paws before she gasped, looking over as someone yelped.

An enormous green dragon stood on all fours and glared down at something between its front legs. Her left eye was closed and blood pored from a deep gash across it while her neck was torn up.

But, hope finally came in the form of a snowy white dragon.

With a great bellow, Haku knocked Bade off of Chihiro as he landed on the earth. The pressure gone, the dragoness breathed a sigh of relief.

"This isn't over Haku. We're going to finish this on my terms," snarled their mythical opponent. "Consider this your final warning, I'll kill her next time Haku."

With that, she grasped Bade's neck in her mouth, quickly helping him depart to the sky.

The white dragon snarled and leapt into the air, but was too startled by Chihiro's cry to take off.

"Raider!"

The midnight-hued ogre wolf lay gracefully where Mara had been standing. His position might have been mistaken for sleeping, but he did not stir. Turning to her human form, Chihiro walked over to her large guardian.

Haku noticed how the edges of Raider's body were fading.

The girl sat next to the beast, dead silent. She simply sat, looking at his wolf-like body. He was so big, even on his side. There were no ugly gashes or wounds, but the horn atop his head was broken. Other than that, he looked ok.

"She crushed him, didn't she?"

The white dragon opened his muzzle, as if to speak physically, but was too stunned to reply. He rested his head on her shoulder, nuzzling her cheek softly.

"I know Haku. Maybe, maybe he's with Kira. At least….until he comes back."


	24. Stark white flowers

The residents of the Silver Valley subdivision would forever ponder the strange patch of stark white flowers that bloomed under every full moon in the summertime. The beautiful tulip-like flowers grew only on Mr. Hudson's backyard, leading along a path that ran back to the house where every neighbor knew the family of the missing girl lived. Most figured it was a good sign for the unfortunate family. The flowers were never eaten by pesky rabbits or even touched by bees. They simply bloomed for a week before the head of the flower would bend the stalk until it resembled a falling tear-shape.

Such mystical flowers were highly prized and very rare. They were called simply what they were created by, Dragon Tears.

Haku had comforted Chihiro while she shed silent tears, no huffing or sniffing. Eventually the sun dipped behind the edge of the earth and the green-haired dragon carefully lifted his fragile human-shaped friend back to the spirit world.

"_What exactly is she now?"_ was his only thought.

* * *

The water was ridiculously white.

In fact, it was so white, Chihiro's first assumption was, "_milk!"_

Something laughed with a jingle-like tone in her mind.

Thinking someone was laughing behind her, Chihiro tightened both fists and swung in a wide arc behind her. The laughter never faltered.

_What is this place? The white stuff looks like an ocean and what I'm standing on looks like sand, only dark blue. Whoa! That looks like a rainforest, but all of the leaves are red…_

Chihiro walked slowly in her human form across the "beach" and towards the red woods. She couldn't tell if the dark grey sky was being brightened by the light blue star in the sky or not.

…_weird._

Without warning, a gale-force wind struck, spinning Chihiro and knocking her with the force of another person. Falling, she yelped and put both arms out to catch her before she could fall.

But, she didn't land in the sand. It was soft green grass, and it was the right color.

The girl looked up from where she fell and was nose-to-nose with a red-brown horse with solid black opals.

"Nice to see you again, Chihiro."


	25. Always

Oh Dairy was beautiful.

The ugly deteriorating hide that resembled something akin to rotting flesh was transformed into a bright red coat in the sunlight and with a mane that shone a healthy black. He practically danced on his hooves before nuzzling Chihiro. Past him, Chihiro could make out other pegicorns, one in particularly large female looking his way.

"Why am I here Dairy? Where are we? Where's Haku?"

The equine gave her a small grin before frowning.

"Come Chihiro, we need to talk."

Kneeling down, the girl was offered the chance to ride another mystical being (her first was Haku). She accepted, carefully avoiding his lovely now feathered wings before he walked away from the other creatures with her.

"Raider can no longer be your guardian. In fact, he never was honestly meant to be one. You're actually here to decide if you want to be with Haku forever, because there is a chance that can happen."

Chihiro could only hold her breath; there was always a price to pay for anything that had to do with the spirit world.

"Don't tense so much. Breath!" he laughed. "Yes, there is a catch, you must purify Haku and Bade, and eventually Haku's mother."

"What?" she scrunched her face, sliding off his back and next to the river Dairy stopped next to.

"Let me explain it to you…..but you can't tell Haku….."


	26. Confirmed

A white dragon-girl stretched aching limbs in her more reptile-like form under the bright glow of a summer-sun on the bank of a large river in the spirit world. Lazily, she rubbed her eyes and altered her partner of her consciousness when she mumbled something about dreaming.

"Good sleep?" he asked softly, only flicking a horse-like ear towards her, intent on watching his river.

She gave a soft purr-like reply, rubbing the last of the sleep from her eyes.

Chihiro felt herself sigh as she openly stared at the green-tinted creature nearby. He was the ideal picture of a Chinese dragon from the childhood books her grandfather had shown her. With a finely chiseled face, he looked almost wolf-like in the afternoon glow. There was only one thing to mar his perfect fantasy-image. It was the jet-black scales that replaced once snow-white ones. The inky-look covered the majority of his body now, only small spots of white were seen, and the thick teal mane was now shaggy and flopped over.

"What happened to your paw!" she shrieked when her gaze reached his rear limb. It had bubble-like tumors and a large hole.

Turning to face her, he snatched the deformed limb to tuck away beneath his bulk.

"It's nothing."

"Let me see it…" Chihiro asked as she began to walk towards him.

There was a resounding "snap!" of fangs as Haku raised his head to tower over the girl.

Time stopped.

She stood frozen, almost expecting him to strike her next. He, however, began to shift his weight before lying back down on the ground with his paws over his eyes.

"I….."

The girl simply "shhh'd" Haku, laying next to him and resting her head under his.

"Dairy was right."

Haku raised his head to look down at her, "right about what?"

"Your heart is tainted. I can't save you anymore Haku," she whimpered, tears gathering in her orbs again.

"Then I will pass on…..but not without helping your brother first," the black dragon whispered. "I will always love you Chihiro."

And when she raised her gaze to meet his, she noticed how once his beautiful teal eyes were surrounded almost completely by black rather than white.

"And I will always love you."

* * *

Slightly Haunted: I'm going to try to finish this story within a week, maybe continue, who knows :) 


	27. One Down

It could have been the sound of bones literally snapping.

It was possibly the overwhelming metallic-like smell of blood.

It might have been the taste of the tears that ran down her face.

But it was probably the sight of her brother, in his natural form of a small boy, being crushed by a massive black dragon that snapped Chihiro from her hypnotic state.

She wailed with all her might.

It had all started just a few hours after her morning with Haku by the river.

Although the mystic river dragon had almost lost his control with a frightening display of power, he decided to try to please what his dark side titled as his "mate", regardless of their lack of a true relationship. While not necessarily sorry about his actions, what little was left of his compassion determined that the girl needed to be happy.

In the late afternoon hours of the spirit world, Haku guided Chihiro down the river that he guarded and into an enormous cove where it ended. Among the rocks, he brought her to meet creatures the once human girl never believed to truly exist. He introduced her to several mermaids who all immediately admired her pearl-like scales. With fits of girlish laughter, they adorned her mane with jewel pins, polished her nails a teal color, and taught her to use her new form to glide at high speeds under the water.

Haku watched, pleased that Chihiro was happy, but not wanting to remind her of his condition.

The sun sank at the edge of the horizon, and with it, the mermaids returned to the dark depths of the ocean.

"Haku! I never dreamed I'd meet real mermaids! They were like a bunch of carefree girls, and…..oh it was awesome!" she twirled in the water and gave Haku a playful splash.

"I'm glad you enjoyed their company, but I'm afraid our little vacation is going to be cut short."

Chihiro turned to look back at Haku from her lazy strokes in the water with a startled expression.

"Bade is challenging us."

Looking up to the sky, the young dragoness was stunned to see the dark out line of a dragon quite far to the west and circling over Haku's territory. From that point on, Chihiro struggled to keep up with the darker dragon that chose to fly at an incredible speed, unable to use her newfound speed underwater because the current was against her.

Ahead of her, she could hear the lion-like roars each dragon challenged the other with, echoing in the valley that lay at the foot of an enormous mountain. Stopping a good quarter mile away, she paused to allow her heavy breathing to subside, and was caught in a trance.

Haku and Bade danced around one another, moving in a circle shape that stayed the same size. Each roared periodically, rolling their orbs, snapping their jaws, growling, and throwing tuffs of grass with sharp talons. Blade stopped the pacing first, turning to the center of the circle and giving the highest-pitched cry yet. Haku turned in towards the circle, raised his head and curled his lip.

In a flash, both brutes were locked front paw to front paw. Jaws snapped as each sought to tear into the other brute's head or neck, neither making more than shallow gashes. However, Haku missed a strike, tearing Bade's left ear while Bade took the opening and clamped his fangs around Haku's exposed neck.

Luckily for Haku, Bade didn't strike as deeply as he had planned and much lower than intended. Still, with the grip he had on the older dragon, Haku was in trouble. He reached up with his front paws and started to tear into the lowered head and neck of the other dragon. Bade made a terrible cry as the strikes pounded into him, releasing Haku in pain. But Haku didn't stop his assault until the other dragon fell onto its back and began to change into a human form.

This is about the point where this chapter started.

And after only seconds of struggling under the weight of the mighty Kohaku river dragon, Bade exhaled a last gust of air as he was crushed; his eyes turned toward his sister and he mouthed, "I'm sorry Chihiro."

* * *

Slightly Haunted : Yes, I know. Very unoriginal, but I promise, I will try to suprise you in the end ;)


	28. Good Night

Chihiro had cried the last of her tears only a minute after Bade's passing. The boy had a peaceful expression; though the girl wasn't sure she wanted to see the rest of him beneath the paw of Haku. Reaching her own deadly talons which shone with the teal from the mermaids polishing, she wanted to cradle Bade.

But, Haku began to growl.

"Haku, please, let me hold him. I'd like to bury him some place proper…"

The black dragon only snarled, his muzzle moved to within inches of the dragoness.

"I mean it Haku. I knew what had to be done, but…." She paused as his growling increased. "Then what do you plan to do?"

"Eat him," he half growled and half spoke, picking up the boy.

Without even thinking, Chihiro leapt forward, claws extended towards the paw that grasped her brother. Somewhat surprised, Haku dropped the body to the dirt and slashed at the dragoness that was tearing his limb.

She hissed in pain, dropping to the dirt to cover the boy with her own body. She felt a long tear across her cheek beginning to spill precious drops.

Haku growled once more, looking down at her. She half-whimpered.

"Fine. Do what you wish with it, but do it quick," he barked.

She scrambled up, cradling Bade with her forepaws, "I'm going to bury him."

"I don't care what you do," he spat. "Just hurry up already."

She nodded, picking the boy up by the neck of his shirt with her fangs, and began her trek an enormous tree she had seen a little under a half mile away.

* * *

Within an hour, Chihiro trudged back to Haku's side. The dark dragon was lying on the ground, unmoving; both of his ears were trained solely on the mountain. The dragoness was surprised he noticed her there.

"I want to you run to the water Chihiro," he whispered harshly, never losing his focus.

"But…."

"Now!" he roared.

_No! I won't be ordered around by him anymore!_ She thought, opening her jaws to argue, but her tongue refused to move when the dark dragon turned his gaze to meet her.

His eyes were solid black with thin teal irises.

She bolted, more frightened then she had ever been in her entire life. _Why! What's he going to do?_ A frustrated roar broke out from behind her seconds later, and she could sense his fast approach. With a quick glance behind her, she could see him within fifty yards. Waiting a few seconds, she watched him prepare to spring, and threw her weight to make an almost ninety degree turn. Her reward was a loud thump as he smacked into the ground, the space she had occupied moments before.

_I can't outrun him forever, and that trick won't work so well again, if at all!_

The water was too far away.

The pearly-scaled beast stopped, turning around and watched her black companion.

He growled, picking himself up and shook like a wet dog. Dust rose in a great cloud around him. As if having forgotten something important and suddenly realizing it, he snapped his head towards Chihiro.

"What's wrong Haku?" she asked softly.

Two enormous griffons, both a dark green in color, flew over her head from behind and tackled Haku. Chihiro was having a hard time seeing who was clawing who, but she ran forward and grabbed the back neck of the griffon with the less puffy mane, tossing the massive beast that was at least a third of her size away. The second griffon stopped his assault on Haku, leaping up to claw at the top of Chihiro's neck.

The dragoness roared, falling to her side at the impact and tried to use her short limbs to knock the mythical beast away. But, it only moved to her shoulder, making a deep gash as she rolled over and attempted to allow her neck the freedom to move.

A black flash appeared, plowing the bird-lion creature off of her and running after the fleeing pair.

He stopped soon after, and turned to face Chihiro.

His teal eyes didn't have the wise air she was use to, the confidence that seemed to always radiate from him. Now, he cocked his head to the side before walking over calmly to her.

She was still frightened, and braced herself for another run.

He paused, lowering his head and tail before closing the gap between them. And close he did! Haku touched noses with her, sniffing deeply before moving to sniff the rest of her.

"What are you doing Haku?"

Seemingly ignoring her question, the brute simply made a small purr-like noise before lying down in a horseshoe shape near her, nudging her to do the same. When she finally did, he wrapped around, outside of her. He began to purr deeply, gently licking her shoulder where the griffon had made a gash.

The noise he was making and the vibrations from it were soothing as massaged her pain away.

"Goodnight….Haku."

* * *

Slightly Haunted : I hoped I've satisfied at least some of you...I keep thinking of different ways that I could close this story, but I definitely don't want it to be too abrupt. Comments/ideas/suggestions are all welcome. I love e-mail ;)


	29. The Nature of the Beast

The rain that lightly drizzled down to soak the ground was a welcome reality check to Chihiro. Dark clouds and light fog made the spirit world seem so much more…..real. The cold drops of rain might have bothered her in human form, but tough scales made for an underwater atmosphere protected her from the natural elements.

Even so, the dragoness realized that she really didn't like the rain; the mud it created would soon coat her ivory hide.

Sighing, she made her first official, what her brain titled "happy growl", snuggling against the now solid black dragon wrapped around her. The brute opened an eye before making a soft snort. After another few minutes, Haku gently urged Chihiro up, shaking his body all over, his decaying paw catching her attention.

"Is there anyway we can stop it?" she asked, looking at it.

This time, rather than snatch the limb away, he looked at it as if noticing he was injured for the first time. He looked back up at Chihiro before heading towards the river, stopping and looking over his shoulder after heading off a few feet.

"Alright, I'm coming!" the white dragon hurried along, nipping her partner on the side and racing ahead.

She heard Haku snort, with a playful growl before he tackled her as they reached the water. Somersaulting, they tumbled into the once peaceful stream, sending huge waves to each side of the bank. Chihiro gave a laugh, giving Haku a quick kiss to his muzzle.

Haku froze, looking at her with his head tilted again.

"Damn it Haku! Say something!"

She sat, huffing in anger more than exhaustion.

Not a sound came from him.

"I still love you," she sighed.

Haku made a faint growl, touching his forehead to hers.

…………………………………….

Chihiro slowly woke. Her fuzzy vision was quickly recovering, and she had a strange sense that she need to wake up- and _fast_. Lounging under an enormous willow tree at the edge of Haku's river, she quickly noticed the lack of heat from the black dragon that had surrounded her when they had decided to sleep for the night.

Storming out of the curtain of leaves, she stuck her nose to the air, breathing in heavily as every hair on her muzzle stood on end.

"Haku!" she roared.

The rain had stopped early in the evening, but left the ground wet because the sun had yet to rise for the day. The thick moist smell overpowered her nose, masking whatever trail she might have found. However, her sharp eyes picked out Haku's muddy prints, widely spaced apart and heading off into the forest. And, as she huffed, getting used to the moist smell, she just barely caught the faint sent of griffons.

_He led them away from me?_

She crashed through the woods, almost losing the trail in her haste as she both ran and sometimes flew through the forest. She could hear the griffons' eagle-like cries in the distance.

The moment the dragoness broke free of the dark woods, she spotted a black heap lying on the ground making half-hearted swipes at two large green griffons that swooped at the same time to strike it. Closing the half-mile gap between the forest and their spot in the grassy meadow, she also noticed something very disturbing about the winged beasts.

The pair of griffons carried human riders.

With saddles and golden bridles, two humans her age rode them. The boy rode the griffon with the thicker mane while the girl rode the other. Each directed its mount with reins in one hand while the other held either a long spear which they thrusted at the black dragon.

"Stop this!" Chihiro screamed, leaping in front of the spears and swiping at the griffons, fangs bared.

"Whoa Dana! It's a moon dragon!" The boy yelled, pulling his beast back and letting it land on the ground.

The girl, however, frowned before following, "It's probably its mate. It doesn't matter, Father ordered us to kill them. She might be infected too."

Chihiro snarled, "I can speak, you know."

"Oh, sorry," the boy blushed.

The pearl dragon turned to Haku, making sure only to turn to the side, not exposing her back. "Haku, are you alright?"

The black brute, however, was lying flat on the ground, panting with his startling black tongue and making wheezing sounds. He opened one eye to look at her.

"We can't fight two dragons, especially if one is pure. Not only would we lose, but father would kill us for harming that pearl colored one," the boy whispered, not realizing how acute a dragon's hearing could be.

"We should get help. Besides that, she is probably infected too," the girl whispered.

Just as the words left her mouth, Haku launched his massive bulk at the girl's griffon, clamping onto its wing. The girl screamed as her charge reared, striking with its claws at the darkened dragon.

"Haku!"

"Maylee!"

The boy leapt from his mount, only a few feet from the girl, and knocked her off the griffon. Haku began to whip his neck from side to side, avoiding the sharp beak as best as he could. A loud cracking noise was heard, like the snap of a dead branch from a tree.

The second griffon tackled Haku, knocking him away from its mate and jumped away from him.

"We have to go Haku!" Chihiro was too shocked to say anything, but took off, looking behind her to watch her partner. He hesitated, licking his fangs and looking intently at the wounded griffon before flying after the dragoness.

* * *

Slightly Haunted : Thank you EVERYONE for the reviews! I will respond personally to some later, but right now I have a time crunch and I though you'd rather have a longer chapter than a bunch of replies ;) 


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